In Waking Dreams
by toomanypickles
Summary: The story of Yuffie Kisaragi and the people who happen to be with her. A story of small moments and useless information about life outside of the plot.
1. Arrival in Traverse

When Yuffie woke up it was dark. She was lying on her back in an alley she didn't recognize, and something was licking her cheek.

"What?" She sat up quickly, pushing off whatever it was that was on top of her. It turned out to be a dog. A strange speckled black and white dog she'd never seen the like of before. "Where am I?" She asked the dog, but it didn't answer. She stood up on legs that felt weak and unsure. She felt a little motion sickness, like she was on a boat. She hated boats.

She walked to the end of the alley and into a square. Here there were brightly shining lights that lit everything up and showed her where she was. Not that it meant anything to her.

"Is this Hollow Bastion?" She asked out loud, even though there was no one nearby but the dog, and the dog had thus far proved to be unhelpful.

She kept walking. The dog followed beside her, wagging its tail at her. She looked down at it and asked, "What do you want?" Still the dog did not answer.

She had the feeling she was being watched, and it was not a pleasant feeling. She slowed down her walk and reached behind her for her shuriken…

Where were her shuriken? She remembered this morning, her dad had reminded her to wear them, because a ninja should never be without his tools. She had sighed and put them on in the end, but where were they now? What had happened since this morning?

Apparently a lot.

A little black creature materialized out of the ground. She nearly laughed, it was so funny looking, but the sight of it sent alarm bells ringing in the back of her head. Another appeared, and another, until she was surrounded.

The dog crouched low to the ground, growling at these new arrivals. Yuffie imitated the dog, crouching down in a fighting stance, putting her hands up at the ready and growling.

They attacked. Yuffie dodged and parried, and she could swear she hit every time, but it didn't seem to be doing anything. It should have been easy to get rid of these little things, but she couldn't do anything against them.

She glanced at the dog. It was growling in the face of two of the small creatures, snapping at their antennae. She shook her head. This wouldn't do.

She leaned over and tugged at the dog's collar. The dog took her hint and ran after her. Her dad had always told her; if you can't beat 'em –run.

She ran around a corner where three more little creatures appeared so she just kept running. She wanted her dad – he would be able to fight them. She hummed to herself as she ran. It didn't matter what the situation was, she always hummed to herself while running. It was her theme song.

She stopped for a moment in another alley that seemed free of menace. As she stood there for a minute, waiting to see if any more creatures would appear the dog barked and struggled free of her grasp. She let go of the collar she hadn't even realized she still held, and mumbled an apology to the dog. It turned to look at her and then ran around the corner.

She figured she was lost anyway; she might as well follow. The dog led her out of the alleyway and into another brightly lit square. She barely got a chance to look around before the dog was off, leading her down another street that ended in a dead end.

There was a door at the end of the street, and the dog sat itself down in front of the door and looked at her, wagging its tail again.

"Is this home then?" She asked. The dog barked and she rolled her eyes. "Sure, now you answer me."

She opened the door.


	2. Leon

"Yuffie!"

A big boy stood there. She sort of remembered him, but what was his name? "Uh… um…"

"Leon."

"Leon?" She hadn't known him very well back in Hollow Bastion, but she had thought his name was something else… She stood in the doorway, staring at him. He looked kind of scary, with a gash across his face and his hair all in a mess.

"You made it here too? How did you get here?" He asked.

"Um…" Yuffie stared at the other black and white dog sitting by his feet. The dog she had followed went to sit next to it and they rubbed noses. She looked at Leon again. "I don't know. I just woke up in the alley. Where are we?" She asked.

Leon shook his head and closed his eyes in thought. Yuffie took a moment to study him. This was the first chance she had ever really had. She was always training with her dad at the dojo, so she didn't get out much. And besides that, he had always seemed to be alone when she saw him; he didn't seem to talk to anyone.

"It's called Traverse Town." He told her after a moment. He opened his eyes to look at her and she was startled by their colour. They reminded her of a gemstone in her mom's old necklace, the one her dad said he would give her when she turned sixteen.

"Oh." She said, and then asked. "Where is that?"

He shrugged. Yuffie scratched behind her ear. "When did you get here?" She asked. "How did we get here?"

"I don't know." He answered. "Like you, I just woke up here, a couple days ago."

Yuffie looked around. The living room was huge. She could see another room through the doorway, and another through there, all empty. Did all this belong to two dogs? She turned back to Leon and asked, "What do we do now?"


	3. Aerith

Aerith appeared the next day. Leon and Yuffie had spent the night in the Dalmatians' house and in the morning he took her to the first district square. She was relieved to see people. She had begun to wonder if the town was completely deserted, but it seemed that everyone just stuck to the First district because there were no creatures there.

That's where they found Aerith, standing on a street corner, looking around her in wonder. She was the one who saw them first actually, and yelled and waved.

"Yuffie! Leon!" She yelled and came running. "It's so good to see some familiar faces!"

Yuffie smiled and returned Aerith's hug. Aerith she had known better back in Hollow Bastion because Aerith came around every day selling flowers, and every week Yuffie's dad would buy a bunch to put up in the entrance of the dojo. Sometimes Aerith would stop to talk to Yuffie, because that's just the kind of person she was.

Aerith was the same as Leon and Yuffie; she had woken up in Traverse Town the night before, lost and confused. She looked so sad when she heard they weren't in Traverse Town anymore. "I hope everyone's alright…" She said quietly. Yuffie put an arm around her waist to cheer her up.

"I'm sure they're fine!" Yuffie said. "They'll probably all turn up within the next week, and we'll take over Traverse Town." She looked to Leon for support, but he was frowning at something she couldn't see when she turned her head to look.


	4. Cid

They were shopping. Or rather, Leon and Aerith were shopping, and Yuffie was tagging along.

She sat on the stairs in the item shop, making origami stars while they talked with the funny little ducks who ran the shop. They too, were from Hollow Bastion. They talked for quite some time, about their uncle and their world. Everyone was trying to figure out exactly what had happened, but Yuffie was only half listening.

Something had come to Hollow Bastion that didn't belong there, they said. Yuffie looked up.

"Little black creatures." She muttered. Leon turned and looked at her with his usual frown. She shrugged. "They're here too." She said.

"What are they?" Aerith asked. Yuffie shrugged again. Leon rubbed his chin, deep in thought. Yuffie wanted to laugh; she had never before met someone who actually rubbed their chin while they thought.

"They are Heartless." Said another voice, a new voice that sounded somehow familiar. Yuffie looked up from her sulk to find yet another familiar face.

"Cid!" She yelled, just as Aerith did the same and threw herself into his arms.

"Hey there kiddos." He said, smiling lopsidedly.

"Heartless…" Leon repeated the word, frowning even more deeply. "What are they exactly?" He asked Cid.

"Well…"


	5. Abandoned Home

Cid had taken over an empty house in the third district of Traverse Town when he arrived, and he took them there, gave them a place to stay. Yuffie fell onto the bed gratefully when they got there; finally a real bed!

"I don't know how long we'll be stuck here," Cid said, "but we might as well make ourselves comfortable. We shouldn't rule out the possibility that we'll be stuck here for the rest of our lives."

Yuffie frowned at the ceiling. What a downer Cid was being. She sat up at pointed at him accusingly. "Stop being so gloomy." She said. "Everything will turn out alright, you'll see."

"I sure hope you're right lass." Cid said, ruffling her hair. She hated it when grown ups did that.

"Of course I'm right." Yuffie said, sounding much more confident than she felt at the moment. "The great ninja Yuffie is never wrong!"

Her reply was greeted by silence. After a moment Aerith sat down next to her and smiled gently. "I believe it too Yuffie." She said. "We'll be fine." She looked at Leon, but he said nothing, and after a minute he went outside without a word.

"What's with him?" Yuffie asked the room, and was once again greeted by silence.


	6. Dreaming

She started having bad dreams. In her dreams she would be running, always running. She was looking for her father, before something terrible could happen to him. Up the stairs of the pagoda she ran, but the stairs seemed to go on forever and it was so dark. The dark was all around her, and it was alive.

She woke up crying. Sometimes Aerith would be awake, and she would try to comfort Yuffie, who didn't really understand. Once she woke up her dreams were always hazy, but Yuffie knew they were somehow important. Aerith knew what she dreamed; she knew what had happened, but she never told Yuffie. That was something she had to realize for herself.

Sometimes Aerith would still be asleep, or she wouldn't even be there. On those nights Yuffie would turn her face to the wall and try to forget her uneasy feelings and go back to sleep.

Why couldn't she remember?


	7. Nightwatch

She sat up in bed and looked around. No sign of Cid of Leon. Careful not to wake Aerith she slipped out of bed and out the window onto the roof. It felt good to stretch and exercise her body that way, instead of simply going through the door.

Doors were for losers anyway.

The nights in Traverse Town were warm. They weren't really nights anyway; it was always night, and it was always light with all the streetlights going all the time. She was really starting to like the place. The people were nice and the scenery was a lot like the home she remembered, with more of a glow. It had character.

She found a quiet spot on the roof in the second district and sat down to think. She couldn't sleep anymore, not with these dreams she'd been having.

How many nights had it been like this? How many years?

"Bad dreams again?"

Yuffie looked down to see Leon standing in the street looking up at her, one hand on his hip, the other holding his gunblade loosely. He must've been out hunting Heartless.

She shrugged. How would he know anyway? He was never there.

Leon jumped up to the roof, pushing off of nearby walls. He would make a half decent ninja with the right training and a less conspicuous weapon. "You can tell me." He said.

Yuffie laughed. "That's wonderful, coming from you, Mr. Stoic." She said. "It doesn't matter anyway."

"I think it does." Leon said. "You're the only one who doesn't remember yet…"

Yuffie frowned. "What is it you guys remember? Can't you just tell me? I'm bound to remember eventually anyway."

Leon looked away. Yuffie sighed and drew her knees up to her chin. "Whatever." She muttered.

Leon was silent. They sat and watched the lights flickering for a while. "So…" she said eventually. "Are you hunting Heartless?"

Leon nodded.

"You come out every night don't you?" She asked. He just shrugged. She looked at his gunblade, sitting on the roof between them. "Mind if I join you?"


	8. Oatmeal

"I hate oatmeal."

Aerith looked up from her breakfast at Yuffie, who was staring angrily at her own bowl. "I'm sorry?"

Yuffie sighed. "Isn't there anything else to eat? Every morning it's the same lumpy oatmeal for breakfast. Aren't you sick of it yet?"

Aerith shrugged. "It's not so bad."

"Yes it is. If it was good oatmeal, maybe then I wouldn't hate it so much."

Aerith raised her eyebrows at the younger girl. "Is this really about the oatmeal?"

"Yes!" Yuffie said vehemently. "And Cid I guess. Why does he make such terrible oatmeal?"

"Because I love to hear you whine." Cid said sarcastically, coming in the doorway. Yuffie turned and grinned at him.

"Hey old man!"

Cid shook his head. "Kids these days. When I was your age we were happy if we got porridge for breakfast."

"When were you ever my age?" Yuffie asked, getting up and leaving her oatmeal at the table. "Weren't you born a cranky old man?"

"Yuffie!" Aerith protested. She didn't like it when Yuffie bothered Cid. He just shook his head at her.

"Don't worry about it Aerith." He said, sitting down at the table across from her with a groan. "After all, she is right." He turned and grinned at Yuffie.

Yuffie laughed. "Well I'm off to hunt down some Heartless." She announced. "Let me know if you invent something useful." She told Cid and jumped out the window.

Cid turned back to the table, looking down at Yuffie's unfinished oatmeal. "When I was a kid, we used the door like normal people." He muttered.

Aerith laughed.


	9. The Search

"Dad!" She yelled, her voice hoarse from screaming and running. "Hey Old Man!"

There was no answer.

The darkness was like smoke, getting in her eyes and lungs and choking her. She coughed, trying to get it out. She didn't want to die here; the old man would be alone if she died, and then who would save him.

For sure he needed saving, so she couldn't give up.

She tried to jump up, higher than the darkness, and for a minute she did and she could look around.

The city was covered in darkness. It crawled over the land, spreading to every corner.

"What the hell?" She wondered out loud, before she fell back into darkness.

She had to keep moving, keep just out of reach. She couldn't let the darkness get a grip on her. What was it anyway? Since when could darkness reach out and grab her?

As a child, she had never been afraid of the dark.

"Old man!" She yelled again. Where was he? At this rate, she would never find him.

Yuffie woke up gasping for air. "There's darkness in my lungs!" She rasped, but there was no one there.

Aerith was gone.


	10. Talk

Yuffie snuck up behind Aerith and Leon. They were sitting on the roof of the Gizmo Shop, looking over the Second district. She wondered what they were doing out here so late at night. Well, it made sense that Leon was up and about – he always was – but what was Aerith up to?

She sat watching them in silence for a while, biting her thumbnail in concentration. Could she get closer? What if they were talking about what happened back home? Would they reveal something she needed to know?

She just wanted to know.

Leon leaned in close to Aerith to say something quietly in her ear. Oh. Yuffie grinned to herself. 'Oh I see how it is.'

Never mind then.

Yuffie stood up and snuck away quietly.

"There, she's gone." Leon said and leaned back. Aerith shook her head.

"I don't understand why you're hiding this mouse from her."

"She still hasn't remembered." Leon said, looking out at the city lights. "Who knows what will happen if she finds out the wrong way. I just can't be sure of what this king will say to her if they meet. And if she knew about him, there's no doubt that she would try to meet him."

Aerith smiled. "You know, no matter how much you try to act like a loner, you still care too much about the people around you."


	11. Cafe

"Let's eat at the cafe today." Yuffie said, glaring at Cid. Cid didn't even look up from his newspaper. "I'm sick and tired of-"

"Ok. Let's go." Leon interrupted, standing up and going out the door.

"What?" Yuffie half stood and stared at him. "Just like that?" She looked at Aerith, but Aerith just smiled at her. "That was too easy."

"Whatever." Leon said and shut the door behind him.

"Uh, wait!" Yuffie grabbed Aerith's hand and ran after him. Sure, he could leave Yuffie behind just like that, but not Aerith too? After what she had seen the other night... "Are you coming old man?" She yelled over her shoulder at Cid.

Cid waved her away. "I'm too old. I'd rather just sit here and read my paper in peace if you don't mind."

"I don't mind at all!"

"Bye Cid!" Aerith called, allowing herself to be dragged along by Yuffie. "We'll bring you back something."

Yuffie sat Aerith next to Leon and she herself sat across from them. Yeah, they were a pretty couple. They looked like they were made for each other, when she saw them like this. She sighed happily. At least something good had come of this whole disaster.

"Is something wrong Yuffie?" Aerith asked.

"No." Yuffie answered. "I'm just so happy to have some real food!" She glanced at the menu and put it down, having already decided. "I'm going to have a hamburger!"

Leon glanced at Yuffie and then at Aerith. Aerith shrugged. Yuffie cocked her head to the side. "Um... actually, I think I'm going to get that to go. I just remembered I told Merlin I would help him move in this afternoon." She said.

When the food came she grabbed her hamburger and whatever Aerith had ordered for Cid and ran off. What a clever girl she was.

Leon gave Aerith a confused look after Yuffie had left. "What was that all about?" He wondered.

Aerith just smiled.


	12. Running

Running through darkness again. Every night she was here and she was getting tired of it. She was getting tired, running all the time. Her lungs burned and her legs were starting to turn to jelly. Never before in her life had she felt so worn out.

_Where are you?_

"Old man!" She yelled. She never remembered there being so many stairs in the pagoda. "Godo!"

The darkness attacked. There was something familiar about the bulbous little bodies and spindly antennae, and yet she couldn't have seen them before.

They shouldn't even exist, but that didn't stop them.

_I must be close. I know I am._

And suddenly she was there, and so was he.

Godo was lying face down on the floor, surrounded by a pool of darkness. He was circled by a writhing mass of dark bodies but he himself did not move.

"Daddy!" She screamed, too afraid now to call him names. "Daddy!"


	13. Revenge

"Aerith!" Yuffie woke up yelling. "Aerith!"

Aerith quickly woke up from her own slumber and hugged the younger girl close. "What is it?" She asked. "You're safe now."

"But he'd dead." Yuffie said bitterly. "They killed him. Our pagoda, my world – they destroyed it."

Aerith said nothing.

Yuffie said, "I'm going to kill them all."


	14. Practicality

"So you remembered?"

Yuffie sighed loudly, letting Leon know she had heard him, and she had remembered, but she didn't really want to talk about it. After her grand statement last night, that she would kill all the Heartless who had destroyed her world, she had calmed down this morning and realized how hard that would be – next to impossible.

Not that she would allow that to stop her. It just presented some difficulties.

Leon sat down next to Yuffie. She glanced up at him.

"Did you used to climb towers I Hollow Bastion?" She asked him.

He shook his head. "Only since I met you." He said.

She smiled. "You're pretty good for a beginner." She told him. "You should have trained at the pagoda; then you could have made something of yourself."

"Hm."

Yuffie pulled her knees up to her chin and turned her head to study him. He was rather pretty for a guy; it was lucky for him he had that scar or no one would ever believe he was really tough. She wondered where he had gotten the scar. There was so much she didn't know about him, but she didn't feel right asking him. He was too withdrawn.

"What?" He asked, frowning at her a little.

"Nothing." She answered and turned back to looking at the town square. "I was just thinking that we could be stuck here for a long time. We've got to figure out a way to make money."


	15. Jerk

Soon after they took over the hotel Sora appeared.

Of course, Yuffie didn't really have anything to do with the hotel; only that it was her idea to take it over. It was a good steady income as far as she was concerned, and that was what they really needed.

She had already been told about the King, and the Heartless and the keyblade. She didn't really understand it all, or why it was happening, but she at least pretended she did. She understood a lot of it anyway, or so she told herself.

Leon went after him without even telling her. She was busy taking care of Heartless while he went off too find the keyblade master without her.

What a jerk.


	16. Keyblade Kid

"He's cute, don't you think?" Yuffie asked over dinner.

Aerith smiled. "He certainly is."

"Who's this?" Cid asked.

"The keyblade kid." Yuffie answered, just as Aerith answered, 'Sora.'

Yuffie shrugged. "The keyblade kid sounds so much cooler." She said.

"But he's not cool," Aerith said, "he's cute."

"Well he's cool for a kid." Yuffie argued, waving her fork at Aerith.

"What are you talking about?" Cid asked, looking up from his paper. He had a bad habit of reading the paper at the table. "You're just a kid yourself."

"Compared to you, old man." Yuffie shot back. Cid just shrugged it off and buried his nose deeper in his paper.

"I hope he'll be ok." Aerith said quietly.

"Who, the keyblade kid?" Yuffie asked. "The keyblade kid will be fine; he can do anything if he believes! That's the power of a hero."

As usual, Leon said nothing.


	17. Backwards Dreaming

She had thought that once she had figured out what had happened to her home she would stop dreaming. That's the way Leon and Aerith had made it sound.

But she still dreamed nearly every night. The same dream as before, only backwards.

It was getting to the point where she avoided sleeping as much as possible. Instead she would stay awake late into night and go hunting Heartless with Leon. Well, not exactly _with _Leon, just at the time.

There were more Heartless since Sora had appeared. They followed the keyblade, Leon had said, but Yuffie hadn't realized then what that would mean for Traverse Town.

In a way, she was glad there were more Heartless around now, because it meant it was easier for her to kill as many as possible.


	18. White mushroom

"It's cold!" Yuffie yelled, and hit the white mushroom with a nice fire spell. The mushroom smiled and made a chiming noise, then disappeared with a wave of its arms, leaving behind all sorts of goodies for her.

She grinned and turned to Leon. "See? Isn't it awesome?"

Leon stared at her blankly.

"Free loot!" Yuffie yelled, throwing her arms in the air. "Free loot is always awesome!"

Leon scratched his head. "I guess so... but don't you think it's bad for business having Heartless wandering around the rooms?"

Yuffie blinked at him. "I guess so." Then she shrugged. "But business is bad enough by itself anyway." She hated to admit it, but buying the hotel hadn't been the wisest business decision. There were very few people who wanted to risk the second district to stay in their hotel. They only got people for their first few days in Traverse Town, and then they found some way to stay in the first district.

But, she supposed they were still making money, so it was all good.

"Right?"


	19. Dalmations

Yuffie stalked the roofs, on the lookout for Heartless. They were still appearing in large numbers in Traverse Town, even though Sora had already been and gone. If they were really on his trail, then why were there still so many here when he was gone?

She spotted Leon below in the second district, on his way to visit the Dalmatians it looked like.

"Going to see your puppies?" She asked, as she dropped to the ground beside him. "You're so cute."

Leon just glared at her. "There's no need for you to make fun of me." He said and kept walking.

"I'm not." Yuffie protested, following him through the door into the Dalmatians' house. Pongo and Perdita were just inside, waiting for the rest of their children. Leon stopped first to greet them while Yuffie plunged headlong into the bunch of thirty or so Dalmatians that Sora had already rescued. As tiny tongues licked her face and hands and tails batted furiously against her limbs Yuffie laughed. They were so adorable – it was impossible not to love them.

She looked up at Leon, smiling at the mess of puppies on the ground with Pongo and Perdita. In a lot of ways, he was like the puppies.

They were all far from home.


	20. Bad ideas

"You and Aerith aren't really going out are you?"

Leon turned around and stared up at Yuffie, standing on a lamp post, with a blank look. "Why would you even think that?" He asked.

Yuffie jumped down to stand beside him. "Because you guys were all friendly that one... night..." Realizing her mistake Yuffie flushed.

"What night?" Leon asked, raising an eyebrow at her. "Have you been spying Yuffie?"

Yuffie shook her head. "Of course not! I was just out hunting Heartless when I saw you guys. Or at least, I thought I saw you guys. What were you guys doing then, if you're not a couple?"

Leon shrugged. "Maybe we were just offering each other comfort." He said. "After all, you sleep with Aerith every night. I don't ask you about your relationship with her."

Yuffie blushed. "That's not the same! And I don't sleep with her anymore! That was just when we only had one bed."

"Right." Leon nodded.

Yuffie glared at him for a moment, but as he seemed unperturbed and not about to say anything more she just stuck out her tongue and jumped away. "Whatever man! You shouldn't fake those things!" She yelled as she retreated.

That had been a bad idea.


	21. Hiding

Yuffie scrunched up her nose as she stared at her face in the mirror.

"Do you think I should grow my hair out?" She asked Aerith, who was sitting at the desk behind her, working out finances.

Aerith shook her head.

"Yeah you're right. Long hair wouldn't suit me. Not like it suits you." She crouched beside Aerith and picked up a strand of the older girl's hair in her fingers. Aerith had such beautiful hair; it was way nicer than her own. Yuffie's hair was coarse and thick and board straight, where Aerith's hair was smooth and fine.

Aerith smiled, but she wasn't really paying attention; busy with the accounts.

"Besides," Yuffie said, dropping Aerith's hair and turning away. "Long hair would be too much of a pain. I don't have the patience."

Aerith shrugged. Yuffie set her chin on the table next to her and turned to watch her. Aerith had her brow furrowed in concentration; the frown looked strange on her. She was always smiling.

_That means she's hiding something._

That's what Godo would say. Anyone who smiles too much is suspicious.

"You're already beautiful." Aerith said suddenly, quietly. Yuffie raised her eyebrows at Aerith who finally turned and smiled at her.

What are you hiding?


	22. Coliseum

Yuffie found Leon in the first district, eating lunch with Cid at the cafe. She sat down between them and promptly starting munching on his fries. "Hey Leon have you heard about the coliseum competition?" She asked.

"Yes I have." He answered, staring at her without expression.

She raised her eyebrows. His face retained its expressionless-ness. "You're so dense sometimes." She said with a sigh, stuffing her face with his fries.

"Is that what you think?" He asked. Cid snorted.

Yuffie huffed her frustration at them. "Let's go!"

Leon pointedly ignored her.

"Come on Leon, don't you think it would be fun?" She pleaded. She really needed someone to go with her; she couldn't drive the gummi ship.

Leon shrugged.

Yuffie turned to Cid. "Make him go with me." She told him.

Cid raised an eyebrow at her. "Now why would I do that when you're so rude to me all the time?"

Yuffie glared at him for a moment. She was considering being nice to him in exchange for this favour – but it just wasn't worth it. She turned back to Leon. "I hear Sora is going to be there." She said.

Leon covered his eyes with a hand and sighed. "Fine. We'll go."


	23. Trust

Yuffie sat back in the passenger chair and put her feet up on the dashboard of the gummi ship. "This is the life." She commented idly.

Leon glanced at her sidelong and turned back to driving. And shooting. And dodging enemy ships' fire.

Yuffie rummaged through her day pack and found a chocolate bar. "You want some?" She asked, breaking off a piece and offering it to Leon.

"No thank you." He said.

Yuffie shrugged and put the offered piece in her own mouth. "Suit yourself." She leaned back in her chair again. "Hey, watch out on the left there."

Leon dodged to the right, narrowly avoiding a missile.

"How can you be so laid back now, at a moment like this?" He asked, keeping his eyes on the 'road'.

Yuffie looked at Leon's profile. He was so intense sometimes, most of the time really. Everything he did, he did with all his concentration. There was nothing half-assed about anything he did.

She smiled and popped another piece of chocolate in her mouth. "Because I trust you."


	24. Return

"So how was your trip?" Aerith asked, upon their return. She and Cid were sitting at the table eating breakfast by the looks of it. Cid of course had his nose buried in a newspaper, but looked up with an expression of mild interest to hear their response.

"Would you believe it, we got our butts kicked by the Keyblade Kid!" Yuffie exclaimed, smiling widely. She nudged Leon in the side. "I just don't think he was really into it." She complained. "He totally dragged me down!"

Aerith laughed. "I dragged you down." Leon said blandly. "Right."

"Well, it's okay." Yuffie told him, patting him on the head. She was surprised at how soft and fine his hair felt. Did _everyone_ have nicer hair than her? "I'll still be your friend."

"So much for that plan, eh Leon?" Cid said. Yuffie turned to glare at him, but his face was already behind the paper again.

"Well, I'm glad for Sora." Aerith said. "Even if it means your loss."

Yuffie smiled. "Of course, I am too." She said, and then sighed. "But just think – it would have been so nice to win the prize."


	25. Let's Rebuild

Yuffie sighed and glanced sidelong at Leon. They were manning the hotel for the day; with both Aerith and Cid off on errands. Really, Leon could do it by himself, but Yuffie was bored and she figured he would get lonely if he was left alone all day. Or at least, he might, if he wasn't Leon.

She wanted to touch his hair again, stupidly, insanely. It wasn't like she wanted so much to be near him, and touch him. It wasn't like she had a crush on him or anything stupid like that. It's just that his hair was so soft when she touched it; it was hard to believe. She had begun to wonder if she had just imagined it feeling that way.

She wanted to pet his head, as if he was a dog, basically.

She tore her gaze away from his head and stared at the door, willing customers to come in. No one answered her silent call. She made a mental note to work on her telepathy.

They had been sitting there for what felt like days, what was probably really only a few hours, if even. Yuffie had a way of stretching tales and time, and she knew it as well as anyone else. Leon had hardly said a word in all that time, and she was getting tired of talking to a wall.

Maybe, she thought, she should just leave.

But she didn't want to. Not yet.

"Do you think we'll ever go home?" She asked.

Leon closed his eyes, and said nothing. Yuffie looked at him, wondering if he was thinking, or if he was just ignoring her. Had her question made him sad?

"I don't know." He said at last. He opened his eyes and looked at her. Like that first time they had met in Traverse Town, she was again startled by the intensity in his eyes. "But I believe in Sora. And if Sora succeeds, then everything should go back to the way it was before, so I guess what I really mean to say is yes."

"Everything should go back to the way it was before?" Yuffie repeated, thinking of the pagoda, of Godo. "But the dead can't be resurrected." She said quietly.

"No. That's true. Not everything can go back to the way it used to be. And no doubt our home will look very different when we finally get back there; after Maleficent has made her lair there for so long."

Yuffie nodded. "But that doesn't matter. We can always rebuild. Everything can go back to the way it was before if we work hard enough."

Leon looked away, having apparently said enough for the time. Yuffie had to admit, he had said a lot, especially for him. She smiled at him, even though she didn't think he saw, looking the other way as he was, thanking him for his words.

"Leon? When we get home, let's put in our everything to rebuilding our home." She said. "Let's try really hard to put things back where they belong."

She wasn't really sure, but there maybe, she saw a glimmer of a smile.


	26. Thief

"Someone had stolen my bottomless bag!" Merlin exclaimed, bursting into the room. "You four must help me find the perpetrator immediately!"

"Of course!" Aerith exclaimed, standing up determinedly. She tried to look fierce. "We'll teach any thief a lesson!"

Leon covered his mouth with a gloved hand. Yuffie glanced at him, wondering if he was laughing.

"Just give it back Yuffie." Cid said.

"What?!" Yuffie exclaimed, jumping up in turn now. "Are you accusing _me_?"

"I thought I made that much pretty clear." He said.

Yuffie glared at him. "You've stepped over the line now old man! I'll teach _you_ a lesson!" She jumped over the table at Cid, but was suddenly caught by Aerith.

"Calm down Yuffie." Aerith said, herself very calm. Yuffie pursed her lips. "If you're innocent then there's no need to get so worked up."

"That's the whole reason I am worked up!" Yuffie said. "I'll admit to my faults, but to be wrongfully accused like that!"

"So you are a thief then." Cid said.

Leon looked apologetically at Merlin, whose plan to enlist the aid of his four friends seemed to be a failure.

Yuffie stopped struggling and Aerith let her go. "Well... I mean, sometimes I just have to take things, like a twitch. But never anything important! And not this!"

Meanwhile Leon got up and went to the front desk. He fished around in the drawers for a second before coming back and handing a bag to Merlin.

Yuffie pointed furiously at Cid. "You have no right to accuse me with no proof!" She yelled, but Cid wasn't even paying attention to her. He was chuckling at something that was happening behind her. She swivelled around to see Merlin holding his bag, and thanking Leon for returning it. "Um... What?"

"I found it in the Dalmatians' house." Leon said, looking up and shrugging. "One of the puppies must have found it and brought it back there."

"Ah yes of course." Merlin said. "Thank you again Leon, I've got to get back to my research now."

As soon as he was gone Cid burst out laughing. Yuffie turned around and was about to chew him out, but found she no longer felt like it and ended up laughing along with him.


	27. Thanks

Late that night Yuffie knocked on Leon's door, but there was no answer. She was about to go back to bed when she noticed movement outside the window. There in the courtyard was Leon, fighting off a pack of Heartless.

"Yiiiii!" She yelled, launching herself into the fray. Sure, she wasn't really needed, but that hardly mattered to her.

"Couldn't sleep?" Yuffie asked, once the Heartless had all been taken care of.

"I could ask you the same thing." Leon answered.

"Actually I was looking for you." Yuffie said. Leon raised his eyebrows in response. Yuffie went on. "I just wanted to say... thank you. You could have ratted me out but you didn't."

"What do you mean, 'rat you out'?" Leon asked, feigning ignorance. "I really did find the bag in the Dalmatians' house."

Yuffie flushed. Well, yeah because that's where she had hid it. She didn't know why she had stolen the bag even. It was just there, and then it was in her hand. That's how it always seemed to go.

But really, if anyone had stopped to think about it, the Dalmatians never left their house, and Pongo and Perdita certainly wouldn't let the puppies out of their sight now that they had gone missing once already.

"Well, thanks anyway." Yuffie said, and waved goodnight as she went back to her room.


	28. Alive

"He's alive."

Aerith looked so happy, so sad, which was it?

Yuffie looked at Leon for clarification. What had he said to her, so quietly that Yuffie couldn't hear? Why was everything a secret with him?

Or rather, why did he keep everything a secret from her?

Aerith smiled. "Cloud's alive." She said, and then she burst into tears.


	29. Forgotten

"So, you really love him don't you?" Yuffie asked Aerith. Aerith nodded. "What's that like?"

"Immeasurably painful."

Yuffie blinked at Aerith, and let out a little laugh, thinking she was joking. Aerith smiled, but she didn't laugh. Yuffie blinked at Aerith. "Oh. ...Really?"

Aerith tilted her head to the side. "Well... It's hard, when you can never be sure. I never know what he's thinking, and now Leon says he's lost his memory. Does that mean that he's forgotten me too?"

'Probably.' Yuffie thought, but luckily caught herself before she could say it out loud. What kind of a jerk was she? "You can never really forget the one you love." She said instead, knowing these things not from her own experiences but from stories, and movies she had seen at the cinema. "He'll be back."

But then, she didn't know if she even believed herself.


	30. Life's Not Fair

"What about you Leon? Is there anyone who might have forgotten you?"

Leon looked up from the Fat Body he was fighting. "This isn't the time Yuffie." He said breathlessly.

"I can wait." Yuffie replied, crossing her legs and watching intently. Leon spared her a brief glare before turning back to the Heartless. He made short work of it, and Yuffie clapped. "See? That hardly took any time at all. I'm glad too, because I'm not very patient."

"What do you want now Yuffie?"

"I want to know if you have a Cloud." Yuffie said.

"I knew Cloud back home." He said. Yuffie sighed, wondering if he was being purposefully dense. He wasn't dumb, she knew that.

"I mean, who did you leave behind in the attack?"

Leon was silent. "I... had a girlfriend." He said at last. Yuffie was a little surprised, not only that he had a girlfriend, but that he even bothered to give her an answer.

But then, why should she be surprised that Leon had a girlfriend? After all, he was a good-looking, dependable guy, and even if he didn't talk very much, he still had a good heart.

Yuffie shook her head; what was she doing, listing all Leon's qualities? "So is she hot?" She asked, to change her train of thought, and to hopefully lighten the mood.

Leon raised an eyebrow at her, and kind of smiled. "She's very pretty yes."

Yuffie sighed. Everyone had someone to love it seemed. Probably even Cid had someone waiting for him back home, some foxy old lady who cooked his food and brought him the paper every morning. No doubt, his hair felt nicer than hers too.

Life is so unfair.


	31. Coffee

Yuffie snuck down the stairs into the kitchen, where Cid and Leon were sitting at the table eating breakfast. She raised a finger to her lips when Leon looked up and saw her. He shook his head slightly and went back to reading his section of the paper, apparently ignoring her. She snuck up behind Cid, and just as he was about to reach for his cup of coffee she snatched it up and took a gulp.

She immediately regretted doing so. "Yuck! How can you drink that stuff?" She asked, making a face.

Cid grabbed his coffee back from her. "Some of us don't have the endless energy reserves you young people have." He said grumpily.

Leon grinned suddenly. "You know you have Cid germs now Yuffie." He said dryly.

Yuffie stared at him for a second. Had Leon just made a joke? She was stunned. It took her only a moment to get over her surprise and realize that he was right.

"Oh my god you're right! Gross!" She said, and ran away to rinse out her mouth.


	32. Morning Light

The morning light filtered through the thin curtains of her bedroom. All night, she had lain in bed awake, thinking of her father.

'What if I'm wrong?' She thought. 'Maybe he is alive. What if?'

And she thought, 'Was there some way I could have saved him? Was there something I could have done to have him here with me now?'

She sighed, and huffed, and told herself to shut up, all night long, but she just couldn't stop wondering. If she closed her eyes, she would see herself back in the pagoda, trying to figure out what to do, if it was real or not.

She felt like she was going insane. She had no idea what was real anymore.

She looked at the clock. 6am. She rolled out of bed and dressed. Maybe she would go to the bakery and buy a loaf of fresh bread to have for breakfast.


	33. Bakery

When she got to the bakery Leon was already there, talking to the baker. When Yuffie walked in he looked up in surprise and stopped talking.

Yuffie glared at him, in a bad mood because of last night. She was so sick of all his secrecy.

"What?" She demanded. "Why can't you ever tell me anything? You always shut up when I walk in the room! I just wish you would stop treating me like a child!"

"Um..." Leon stared at Yuffie, taken aback by her outburst. "Ok."

The baker turned away, his shoulders shaking as if he was laughing. Yuffie growled in frustration at the two of them and stomped out of the bakery.


	34. Injury

She heard footsteps coming out of the bakery behind her and jumped up onto the roof to avoid Leon. She didn't want to hear him apologize, or explain. He wouldn't change the way he saw her. She sighed at herself. It wouldn't help that she yelled at him either. He probably just thought she was even more immature now.

Jumping from rooftop to rooftop she was so absorbed in her own thoughts that she didn't even notice the Heartless behind her until it hit her, knocking her off balance and sending her tumbling down the side of the roof onto the ground.

She threw shuriken at the Heartless, watching it disappear, releasing a heart upwards. For a moment she just lay on the ground, breathing slowly and berating herself. How could she be so stupid? Letting a weak little Heartless knock her off a rooftop! God.

She tried to get up, but when she put weight on her hand to push herself up a sharp pain shot through her arm, up from her hand to her shoulder. She gasped and quickly took the weight off her hand.

"Oh come on!" She muttered, inspecting her arm. Her wrist looked a little weird. Perfect. Just what she needed; a sprained wrist.

She hoped it was only sprained, not broken. Getting to her feet as carefully as possible she walked back to the hotel to see Aerith.


	35. Distracted

Yuffie watched Aerith wrap gauze around her wrist. Around and around.

"I feel so stupid." Yuffie said.

Aerith smiled. "It's not your fault. You were distracted by Leon." She said quietly.

"Eh?"

Leon chose that moment to walk in on them. Yuffie and Aerith both looked up at him. Aerith smiled calmly, while Yuffie stared, her face bright red.

"What happened to you?" He asked Yuffie.

Yuffie shrugged. "I fell off a roof." She said. "And landed on my hand."

Leon raised his eyebrows. "Ok." He said and walked past them towards the kitchen. Yuffie noticed then the box in his hands.

"Did you bring back any bread?" She yelled after him. She hadn't had anything to eat since supper the night before. "I'm starving!"


	36. Woman in Blue

**Just pretend Yuffie doesn't know.

* * *

**

Yuffie spent the day behind the counter, reading a book Cid gave her to read. She didn't feel like going out anymore, after her little adventure in the morning.

She was left alone all day, except for one incident.

She wasn't really paying attention. Surprisingly, the book Cid gave her was really good. She was so absorbed she didn't even notice the customers until one of them dinged the little bell on the counter.

Yuffie looked up. A pretty woman in blue was leaning on the counter, smiling brightly at her. "Sorry. I've always loved those things." She said.

"Right. Sorry." Yuffie said. "Do you need a room?" She glanced at the blonde haired man standing behind the woman.

"Actually I'm looking for someone. Is Squall here?" She asked.

Yuffie shook her head. "Sorry. I don't know any Squall." She answered. "You might want to ask around though. Chances are pretty good he's come through here if he's anywhere." She said.

The woman in blue sighed and rubbed her chin in a very familiar manner. "Hm. I was so sure he'd be here... Oh well. Thanks." She said and turned to her companion. "Come on Zell, let's keep looking."

Yuffie watched them go, feeling a tickle at the back of her brain, some glimmer of recognition maybe. She shrugged and turned back to her book. What did it matter anyway? She'd probably never see them again.


	37. Birthday Wish

"Yuffie! Supper is ready!"

Yuffie slid out of her chair at the desk and set up the 'Back in 10' sign before going to the kitchen. There she found the gang all gathered; Aerith, Leon, and Cid, as well as other friends from Traverse Town; Merlin and the ducks.

"Happy Birthday!" They said in unison.

Yuffie smiled widely, but then she frowned. It wasn't her birthday, as far as she knew. She couldn't even remember when her birthday was. "But... how do you know?" She asked.

Aerith walked up to her and took her hand. "Don't ask questions." She told Yuffie, leading her to the table where a beautiful cake was sitting on the table. "Just blow out your candles."

Yuffie looked around at her friends and smiled at them all. Cid scowled at her when she looked at him, and when she met Leon's gaze he raised an eyebrow and smiled at her. She flushed, realizing what he had been doing at the bakery that morning. And she had yelled at him! She quickly looked back at the cake.

She took a moment before blowing out the candles. She was thinking about what to wish for. It would have been so easy, just a little while ago. She would have wished to go home and have her dad back. She would have wished for everything to be the way it used to be.

But then she would never have met Leon. She would never have been good friends with Aerith and Cid.

She looked up Aerith. She could make a wish for Aerith, for her happiness. She could wish for Cloud to remember her and come back for her.

But then, what about everyone else? She shook her head at herself. 'Just make a wish!'

"Come on already!" Cid said, mirroring her thoughts. She stuck her tongue out at him and quickly blew out the candles.

'_I wish for everyone to get home safely.'_

Everyone clapped, as if blowing out candles was such a great feat. "What did you wish for?" Cid asked.

"Don't tell him!" Aerith said. "It won't come true!"

Yuffie glanced at Aerith and then back at Cid. "I see your plan." She said, wagging a finger at him. "I'm not going to fall for it!"

Cid huffed.

"Whatever!" Yuffie said, grabbing the cake knife. "Let's just eat!"


	38. Fun

"Hey Leon, guess what!" Yuffie yelled, skipping into the hotel.

Leon looked up from his papers. He was manning the front desk today, so she knew where to find him, without having to search the town for him. The look he gave her was somewhere between dread and annoyance.

Yuffie smiled. "There's a new tournament at the coliseum." She said. "We should go – last time was so much fun!"

Leon blinked at her. "Fun..."

Yuffie sighed. "Yes. Fun. You know, that thing that people have when they're doing something they like, and it makes them happy. Fun."

Leon graced Yuffie with a smile. "Oh." He said. "I remember fun."


	39. Liar

"Shame on you Leon!" Aerith exclaimed. "You can't bring Yuffie to the coliseum!"

Leon blinked at Aerith, as did Yuffie, standing next to him. They had gone to Aerith to invite her to come watch them, never expecting her to react as she did.

"I can't?" Leon asked.

"Yeah, he can't?" Yuffie echoed.

Aerith shook her head. "Her wrist still hasn't healed fully." She told Leon, ignoring Yuffie. "If she goes and competes now she'll only make it worse."

Leon glanced at Yuffie. "I hadn't thought of that."

"Well I should hope not." Aerith said. "If you had thought of it I'm sure you wouldn't have agreed to bring her there."

Yuffie stood there, slack jawed. She had been betrayed. Aerith was supposed to be excited for them to get the chance to get back at Sora for their earlier defeat. Now it looked like Leon was having second thoughts, and just as he opened his mouth (probably to tell her they couldn't go anymore) she jumped in.

"I won't compete then!" She said. "I'll just cheer Leon on from the sidelines."

Aerith glanced at Yuffie her eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Really? You won't even try to sneak in behind my back?"

Yuffie shook her head, crossing her fingers behind her back.

"Promise?" Aerith asked.

Yuffie nodded. 'Sorry Aerith.' She thought, and agreed out loud. "Promise."

Leon glanced down at her hand behind her back and turned away so Aerith couldn't see him smile.


	40. Sneak

Yuffie stared around at the people (and monsters, and demons, and gods) milling about the coliseum entrance. There were no where near this many people last time they had come for a tournament! She rubbed her hands together in delight. That meant there would be an even better prize this time.

"Watch out!" Leon yelled and grabbed her elbow, dragging her out of the way as a huge behemoth came stomping through the grounds, lead on a chain by a dozen smaller heartless. She smiled sheepishly at him. "Maybe you should go find a good spot in the bleachers now." He told her.

She stared at him for a moment, thinking. It would be better to have him fighting with her, but could she trust him to let her fight? She opened her mouth to tell him her plan when he suddenly pushed her away, staring out across the crowd.

"You'll have to fight on your own this time." He said, "Good luck!"

Yuffie stood in the crowd, staring at his retreating back with her mouth hanging open. That little sneak! He had known all along. She shrugged and ran the other direction towards registration. At least he hadn't told her not to compete, not that that would have stopped her, but it was the thought that counted.


	41. Squash Him

Yuffie went back into the stands dejectedly. That fight against Sora hadn't even been fair. Three against one; as if!

Of course, she thought, the other matches hadn't been one-on-one either. She frowned. Whatever! If her wrist hadn't been injured she would have shown that kid and his friends a thing or two.

She found a small space to sit, between a fat man in a toga and a skinny old man in slacks. This kind of event attracted all kinds – but mostly the male kinds.

As she watched the other matches down below, she massaged her wrist. Stupid Aerith had been right, but she wouldn't admit it to her when she got back to Traverse Town.

Sora and Donald and Goofy kept fighting on. Yuffie sighed. She could have beaten them, if only...

She was so surprised when Leon walked into the arena beside Cloud that she actually stood up and cried out. "What the hell Leon!"

Luckily she wasn't the only one. Apparently, a lot of the crowd had been impressed with the pair last time they had been in the coliseum, and they were favourites now. Most of the coliseum got up and cheered when Leon and Cloud faced off against Sora and company.

Yuffie sat back down with a pout. Where was all this applause when she had been on? Weren't people impressed with her ninja skills too?

It didn't take her long to get over her own wounded pride and become as involved in the fight as everyone else watching. She had expected, with a team like Leon and Cloud, that Sora and his friends wouldn't stand a chance.

But they actually seemed to be winning. She couldn't believe it. "Go Leon!" She yelled. Damn it, she wanted some prize money! "Squash the kid!"


	42. Return Part 2

"So how was your trip?" Aerith asked. Leon stood in the doorway, smiling at the scene; it was exactly the same as their last return from the coliseum.

Yuffie bounced right in past him. "You should have seen it Aerith! Sora and Donald and Goofy were amazing! Leon even teamed up with Cloud and together they were both beaten down!" She laughed, but quickly sobered as Aerith's smile disappeared at the mention of Cloud.

"Cloud was there?" She asked, looking from Yuffie to Leon.

Leon nodded. Yuffie cursed her stupid big mouth. Leon sat at the table with the rest of them. "He's regaining his memories he said, but he wants to remember everything before he comes back to you." He told Aerith.

Aerith smiled sadly. "How very like him." She said, and then turned to Yuffie. "And you. You didn't sneak behind my back and compete in the tournament did you?"

Yuffie shook her head. "Not me!"

Out of the corner of her eye she could see Leon cover his mouth. He coughed, but Aerith didn't react. She didn't suspect a thing.

Cid harrumphed.


	43. If

Yuffie sat on a bench in the second district, holding her wrist in her hand. She had just gotten rid of some Heartless, and now her stupid wrist was bothering her.

"Let me see your wrist."

Yuffie looked up to see Leon walking across the street to her. She smiled at him and put her wrist down. "Hey Leon. What's up? Haven't seen you in a while." What she meant by a while was three days. He had gone missing a few days after their return from the coliseum, on some secret mission no doubt, and hadn't returned even at night.

She knew because she had waited for him.

He held out his hand. Stubbornly, she stuck out her good hand and shook his. "Me, I prefer hugging, but whatever floats your boat."

"Yuffie." He said, a warning note in his voice. She met his eyes and the stubbornness there matched her own. Looking away, she held out her wrist.

She didn't know what good he expected to do. Her wrist was already wrapped up and supported. It just needed time really.

She turned and watched as he unwrapped the gauze from around her wrist. When he was done she kind of flinched. The wrist had turned an ugly greenish purple colour since the coliseum battles, and had become kind of swollen. Not a pretty sight. She waited for the lecture.

Leon said nothing. He held her wrist in his hands and felt around gently with his fingers.

"Well, it's still not broken." He said. He looked at her. "Does it hurt much?" He asked.

She looked at his eyes, and the strangest thought came to mind. "I'm sixteen." She said.

Leon raised an eyebrow and nodded. "Right."

"If I was home now, my dad would have given me mom's necklace."


	44. Ninety Nine

"Yuffie."

What?

"Yuffie."

What?

She sat up in bed and realized she had been dreaming. But the voice calling her wasn't her dad's. He was always the one in her dreams.

She went out onto the balcony, and as she didn't feel like going back to bed she climbed up from there to the rooftop. In the distance she could see someone walking down the street with a familiar stance. She pounced across the rooftops, pretending she was a cat of some sort and soon caught up with Leon.

"Going to see the puppies?" She asked, deepening her voice and hiding so that he wouldn't know it was her.

"Yes I am Yuffie." He said without even looking around for her. "Come with me."

She bounced down to land beside him, a little surprised that he would invite her. Usually he was defensive when it came to the puppies – as if when she said he loved them she was insulting him.

When they got there he held the door open for her. She gave him a confused look before entering. When she stepped inside she realized what had him so happy.

"They're home." He said. "All ninety nine."

Yuffie turned and smiled at him.


	45. Kairi

"She's pretty." Yuffie whispered to Aerith as they stood watching Kairi. "What a lucky boy that Sora is."

Aerith covered her mouth when she laughed.

But Yuffie thought Kairi still looked so sad.


	46. Doubts

"We're going home." Aerith said. "Do you realize that?"

Everyone stopped eating for a moment. It was one of those rare occasions where everyone was gathered for supper.

Leon nodded. "You're right. Sora will succeed." He said.

Cid grunted his agreement.

Yuffie grinned. "You gotta love the Keyblade Kid."

Late that night she sat on top of the clock tower and looked out over Traverse Town. She had smiled then, but she wasn't sure she really meant it. It was so strange; all these years it was all she had wished for, all she thought she wanted. But now that it had become a reality, she wasn't sure she really wanted to go home. She wasn't sure it was even home anymore.

After all, she had spent more years here in Traverse Town than she had in Hollow Bastion. She had so many memories here, and she still didn't even remember everything about her past life.

And who would she go home to? Aerith would no doubt find Cloud there again, and Leon had his girlfriend. Cid had his woman (no matter that Yuffie had invented her) but Yuffie had no one left. No one but those three. They were her family now, but what was she to them really? Leon and Cid never acted like they really cared for her, and Aerith cared for everyone.

When they went back, what would happen to her? Would they still care about her?


	47. Goodbye Traverse

They were leaving Traverse Town behind. The few belongings they had acquired in Traverse they packed into Cid's gummi ship along with the supplies to last them the trip.

Yuffie had always liked road trips.

She stood on a lamp post in the first district, looking out over the city one last time. Once they returned to Hollow Bastion, once Sora fixed the connections between the worlds, there would be no going back. She would never see this place again.

She hadn't slept last night. She had gone through the city, touching everything, burning the sight of everything into her brain. She never wanted to forget this.

"Yuffie! Everyone's waiting for you!" Cid yelled.

Yuffie jerked and fell of the lamppost. She flipped over as she fell and landed on her feet running.

"I'm coming old man!"


	48. Returning Home

It was all such a mess.

If she had been a different person, she would have fallen to her knees and wept at the sight of it. It was so overwhelming – the total destruction of their home.

They were the first to return, the four of them. For the first night they had stayed in the castle, and in the morning they set out towards the remains of their town.

It was midmorning when they got there, and the glaring morning sun did nothing to hide the devastation.

"This sucks!" She yelled, and ran through the rubble, looking for any building left intact.

"Thanks Captain Obvious." Cid had muttered and lit a cigarette. Yuffie thought he had kicked his habit years ago; where had he even gotten a cigarette?

She grabbed the cigarette out of his mouth and quickly ran away. "Don't you start sucking these cancer sticks again!" She scolded him as she retreated out of his reach. He shook his fist at her, but didn't produce another one.

Yuffie ran ahead, trying to find the highest spot so she could get a good look around. "Down there!" She yelled, seeing a small portion of the city that still looked intact.


	49. Empty skeletons

"It's Merlin's house!" Yuffie shouted, jumping up and down in excitement. "And the marketplace too – it's almost intact!" She waved to the others to hurry up.

Aerith was the only one who sped up. She smiled when she reached Yuffie's vantage point and could see everything as well. "You're right. And look – Leon's house is in still ok."

"Perfect!" Yuffie said. "He can put on some tea for us."

Cid walked up behind Yuffie and gave her a nudge towards the buildings. "Quit fooling around and see if there's anything salvageable inside the buildings." He told her.

She saluted him and jumped off to work. It was kind of eerie, walking through the empty skeletons of the buildings, and knowing that this used to be her home. It felt more like a strange world. And after all, she had never really been here, even before the Heartless attacked. She had grown up in the pagoda.

She started with Merlin's house. It looked almost normal on the outside, but the inside was completely ransacked. Merlin had somehow managed to get most of his belongings into his magic bag before he left Hollow Bastion, but what little he had left behind had been ripped to pieces, and the pieces flung around the room. She looked up and saw half a chair hanging from the light fixture.

But the roof was still in one piece. It would do.


	50. Tomorrow

They spent that night in Merlin's house, trying to figure out what to do.

"We'll rebuild." Leon said simply.

"Right. We'll put everything back!" Yuffie agreed.

Cid shook his head at them. "Youthful rashness..." He sighed. "I want to rebuild too, but wishing it and doing it are two very different things."

Yuffie pursed her lips at him. "You're such a downer."

"It is a lot to do." Aerith said quietly. "And if you think about it, it probably seems like too much. I'm sure it seems hopeless. But we just have to work at it, a little bit at a time, and it will all work out."

"Right." Yuffie said. "A little bit at a time."

"We can use parts off the gummi ship to construct a crane." Leon said. "To lift the heavy stuff."

Cid rubbed his stubbly chin. "That could work... I'll get started on that." He said. He looked out the window at the darkness already falling. "In the morning."

Leon nodded. Yuffie grabbed Aerith's hand. "Aerith and I will start cleaning out the buildings that are still standing. We can start with your house Leon."

Leon shrugged and looked down. Aerith squeezed Yuffie's hand. But she still didn't understand.


	51. Silence

And so they started to rebuild. Cid made his crane pretty quickly, and within a month they had cleaned up the streets of the area of the town they were taking care of. Every night before they called it a day, Yuffie liked to stand on the roof of Merlin's house and look around at the work they had done.

"When do you think everyone else will start coming back?" She asked one night, lying in bed beside Aerith. Cid and Leon were sleeping on the other side of the room.

"I don't know." Aerith said. "Maybe they'll all come at once, when Sora puts everything straight again."

"Yeah..." Yuffie sighed. She couldn't wait. She was starting to feel lonely, being the only ones out here in this world. She was used to the noise of Traverse Town, all the people coming and going. Hollow Bastion was so empty, so cold. It was silent.


	52. Birds

"Look Aerith, a bird!" Yuffie pointed at the sky.

But it was empty.

Aerith stared and stared, but she couldn't see anything, and now that she tried again, neither could Yuffie.

"Okay... That's weird." She said. "There was definitely a bird there."

"I'm sure there was." Aerith said. "It's probably a sign."

Yuffie skipped after Aerith as the other girl turned away and towards the next house. "Oh yeah? But what's it a sign of then?"

"A sign that life is returning."


	53. Forgetting

Aerith was right. A few days' later people started appearing. It was the strangest thing too – they appeared in Hollow Bastion just as they had appeared in Traverse Town, only now they had their memories back.

"Sora did it!" Leon said, watching people standing up and looking around in confusion beside Yuffie. Yuffie was smiling uncontrollably.

"Who?" She asked, turning to Leon.

Leon looked at her, and looked just as confused as the newcomers for a minute. "I'm... I'm not sure." He said.

"Oh well." Yuffie consoled him, patting him on the back. "It'll come to you."


	54. Coming

Cloud came back for Aerith. Aerith was so happy now she couldn't stop smiling. Cid's woman never appeared, but he and Merlin were living together in Merlin's house now, forever coming up with new projects.

Yuffie was afraid all over again. Everything was returning to normal, everyone was going home.

But she didn't have a home to go to anymore. She had nowhere to stay, and who would want her now?

It happened one night, when everyone was sitting in Merlin's house drinking tea. Aerith and Cloud got up to leave and Cid and Merlin, old men that they were, had already gone to bed. Yuffie sat across from Leon and tried not to stare at him.

She didn't want to stay in Merlin's house anymore. Besides, there weren't enough beds.

Finally Leon got up, having not said a word in the time he and Yuffie had been sitting together.

She stared into the bottom of her cup as he walked away, trying not to pout. She supposed she could sleep on the floor, and try to get out before Cid or Merlin woke up and realized she had spent the night there. She didn't want them feeling sorry for her.

"Are you coming?" Leon asked. Not as if he expected her to come, not even as if he wanted her to come. He was just wondering.

Yuffie looked up. Leon was standing by the door, looking back at her. There was only the little light from the candle left, so she couldn't see his expression, but he could see her wide smile when she said, "Yes. I'm coming."


	55. New Room

Leon's house was empty. It didn't look like he had put anything in it since it had been cleaned out after the raid. Yuffie stared around her at the utter emptiness of it and nearly regretted her decision.

Leon set his gunblade against the wall and went into another room. Yuffie wandered into the house, looking around. She peeked in all the rooms, looking for a good place to keep her room.

The first room she checked in on was nearly destroyed – the roof torn away and not yet replaced. She shut the door on that one and opened the next one.

The next one looked like it was once a living room or a study. There was a space on the wall for a fireplace, but no windows. She shut the door on it.

The next room was Leon's, as she discovered when she opened the door to find him pulling off his shirt.

"Hey Leon?" She asked.

"Yes?" He asked, not turning around to face her, or putting his shirt back on.

Yuffie stared at his back, criss crossed with old and new scars. She touched one of her own scars. That was the life they had had.

"Why haven't you furnished your house?" She asked.

Leon shrugged, the muscles in his back rippling. Yuffie shivered. She was glad he was on her side. "I haven't had the time." He said.

Yuffie peered around his room. It was empty too. He didn't even have a real bed – just a mat on the floor. "Hm..." She mused. "Well, I'm going to find a room." She said, and ducked out of the doorway.

The next room was a bathroom, evident only by the holes in the floor where the toilet and shower would have been. She went on to the next.

At last, she found her room. It was probably a girl's room once. The wallpaper was delicate pink and yellow flowers on a burgundy backdrop. It was ripped off the wall in several places, showing the stone underneath, but Yuffie could still imagine what it used to look like. She walked in and looked around. There, the dresser would have stood, and the bed there. Maybe a desk there, and on that wall she would have hung all her shuriken.

Yuffie shook her head, clearing away the images. She was just imagining her old room. She sat down on the floor. This was her new room.

She was about to go to sleep right there on the floor when Leon showed up at the door and threw a mat and a blanket at her.

"No pillows yet." He said and walked away.

Yuffie smiled. 'Yet' was the key word there. Oh the things they could have, the things they would fill their city with.

She closed her eyes and tried to sleep, eager for the morning.


	56. Table

Leon stood in the doorway of the room Yuffie had chosen and looked around. He felt that familiar ache, thinking about it, right in the middle of his chest. Of all the rooms she could have chosen, it figured she would choose this one.

"Leon, look!" Yuffie yelled from elsewhere in the house. Leon turned to see her coming towards him, lugging something wooden behind her.

"I made a table for the kitchen!" She said proudly, holding the misshapen wooden construct towards him.

Leon took it and gave it a look over. He wasn't even sure which way was up with the thing, so he handed it back to Yuffie.

"Come on, and see what it looks like." She said, waving him into the kitchen. Leon followed obediently; a little curious to see how it would work.

He watched Yuffie set the table down, and lo and behold, it really was a table. A strange little table that wobbled when Yuffie patted it, but it was a table.

"It's um... modern design." Yuffie said, and laughed. Her laugh was so infectious that Leon couldn't help but smile.


	57. Carving

The work went much faster with all the new people who were arriving every day. Everyone was trying to make a place for themselves. Leon let newcomers stay in his house, until they had a place of their own, and so he and Yuffie were never alone, with all the people coming and going.

Yuffie was glad, even though it meant that she never got her room to herself.

During the day she would help with the rebuilding, patching up roofs and pulling down walls too damaged to be safe anymore. After supper she would head out of the town, looking for wood. She didn't want to take any furniture from the houses, even if she could find some that weren't destroyed, in case the furniture still belonged to someone.

When she found a piece of wood she liked she would bring it home and sit on the roof under a streetlamp, carving away at it until it resembled something useful, or until she couldn't keep from going cross eyed.

Leon eyed each new addition to his house dubiously, but amazingly enough everything worked. The table, the chairs (though they were a bit too short) and the dishes. And Yuffie was getting better. Sure, everything she made was still lumpy, but it was still better. She wished she had taken lessons from Geppetto while she had still had the chance.

Yuffie frowned. Geppetto? Who was that? There was no Geppetto in Hollow Bastion. Where had that name even come from?

Sometimes, when she closed her eyes she could see lights, the lights of a city, but she didn't know where they came from.


	58. Remembering

She started having dreams. In her dreams she was running over rooftops, flying over a city. But it wasn't her home; it wasn't Hollow Bastion. Hollow Bastion had never looked like this, even before the attack. It was always night in this city, but the city itself was never dark, always full of light from streetlamps and neon shop signs.

It all seemed so familiar.

But she remembered the city as being full of life, full of travelers. The city in her dreams was always empty. Its streets were silent, and the shop doors stood open still, as if the people had all disappeared suddenly, and without warning. As if the city was just waiting for life to return.

When she woke up Yuffie could still remember fragments of her dream. Why was it all so familiar?

She got out of bed and stepped over the sleeping body of a woman who was staying with them, out into the hallway. For a moment she paused and had to gather her thoughts together again, to make sure she didn't lose any of the dream. Once she was sure it was all together she walked down the hallway to Leon's room.

When she got there Leon was out, but she didn't want to go back to bed so she sat on his mat and waited. She wondered what Leon was doing staying out so late. It was already early morning, and the sun would be rising in a few hours now.

Leon returned shortly. Yuffie stood up as he walked in the room and smiled to greet him, even though it was too dark to see anyway.

"Leon, I just had a dream." She said.

He had started walking across the room to his bed but stopped. "What about?" He asked warily.

"A city." Yuffie said. Leon let out a little sigh and stepped past Yuffie to flop down on his mat. Not one to be discouraged, Yuffie crouched down beside him and told him about her dream. He listened silently, so that Yuffie wasn't even sure he was awake to hear the whole story. "I think it was our home." She said. "I think that's where we spent the last nine years of our lives."

Leon said nothing for a moment. Yuffie was about to give up and go back to bed, thinking he was asleep, but he spoke up before she had the chance. "Sometimes... I think I remember." He said quietly. "Sometimes I think we own a hotel in a city of crossroads. Sometimes I remember things I know I shouldn't."

"Right. Exactly." Yuffie agreed. "Maybe it's just a matter of time until we have all our memories again."

"Right." Leon said.

Yuffie grinned and stood up. "Well anyway, I just wanted to tell you about this dream before I forgot. You can go to sleep now." She said. She swooped down to give him a motherly peck on the forehead, but ended up missing and hit his nose. How lame, she thought. "Goodnight!" She said, too loudly, and ran away.

Maybe he would forget that part in the morning.


	59. Wood

She is looking for specific pieces of wood now. Now she has something in mind; something she's wanted to make for a long time now but at last she feels good enough to make it. She feels like she can do it now.

She sneaks out that night, out the window, over the roof and silently out back, into the wreckage.

She's been out a few nights now, searching for this wood, and slowly she is gathering the right pieces.

She's almost ready.


	60. Return of the Woman in Blue

In the morning a woman in blue knocked at the door. Yuffie ran to answer it and smiled as she did. She was always happy to see newcomers; to greet the people who had wandered the planets for the past nine years to finally return home.

The woman in blue smiled back. A blonde man with a tattoo on the side of his face stood next to her. "I was told a man named Leon would put us up in his house until we could find a place of our own." The woman in blue said.

She looked familiar somehow. Yuffie could swear she had met the woman before, but just couldn't place her. One more thing she remembered and didn't remember.

"This is the place." Yuffie said, standing back and gesturing the pair in. "It's not much, but I promise you won't be here long before we get you set up in your own place."

"Thank you." The woman in blue said, and hugged Yuffie. "It's so good to finally be home."


	61. Rinoa

Yuffie woke up early to make sure that Leon wouldn't leave before he could meet the new arrivals. She had put the two in one of the empty rooms for the night. It was set up for just such a purpose; for new arrivals.

"Rise and shine!" Yuffie cheered, jumping around Leon's sleeping figure. He shook his head and got up slowly. He had been out late last night too. "We have two new visitors." She said excitedly over his grumbling.

Leon squinted at her and sighed. He pulled on a shirt and followed her out to the kitchen where she had already put the kettle on to boil for coffee.

"Should I go wake them up?" She asked. Leon shook his head and sat at the table. When he leaned his elbow on it, the table tipped precariously, but it had yet to actually fall over.

As it turned out, Yuffie didn't need to go wake the pair up. She had just started to make the coffee when they appeared.

"Smells good." The blonde man said, stretching and yawning. Yuffie noticed he was just as muscular as Leon – no doubt he and the woman in blue had been leading the same kind of life as she and Leon for the past nine years.

"What would you like for breakfast?" Yuffie asked cheerfully. "We have oatmeal, oatmeal, and oatmeal."

She looked to the woman in blue, but she was just standing in the doorway staring at Leon. When Yuffie looked at Leon he had the same expression on his face as the woman. She looked back and forth between the two, staring at each other intently.

"Squall?" The woman in blue asked, as if she didn't quite believe her eyes.

Leon nodded. "It's been a long time Rinoa."


	62. Reunion

She had practically launched herself at Leon, bursting into tears as she did. It was a good thing he had stood up and caught her – Yuffie wasn't sure her chair could have withstood the weight.

Now the two were sitting in the kitchen still, talking quietly. Yuffie and Zell moved into the living room to give them some privacy.

"His old girlfriend..." Yuffie said. An aching feeling gnawed at her stomach, but she ignored it and smiled. "That's wonderful for them. It's pretty amazing don't you think? For them to find each other after so long. I mean, it's so romantic, isn't it?"

Zell looked at his hands. "Yeah." He said. He looked up and grinned at Yuffie. "And I've always been a sucker for romance."

Yuffie sighed. "But now... the coffee's in there with them, and so is breakfast. I don't want to bug them."

"Nuh uh. Me neither." Zell said, shaking his head.

Yuffie stood and held out a hand to Zell. "Come on. We'll get breakfast at Merlin's."


	63. Feeling Down

What was it? This aching, gnawing feeling in her chest?

It was a feeling of being left behind, of being unwanted. She was afraid again now, that no one would care for her anymore, now that they had other things to care about. She had felt this way before when... When?

Yuffie shook her head. What did it matter when? It was always like this. She could live with people, she could be friends with them, but no one ever got really attached to her. She was a substitute, someone to fill an empty space until the real thing came home. Aerith had left her for Cloud, Merlin and Cid didn't need her anymore, and now that Leon had his girlfriend back, what would he want Yuffie around for? She would just get in the way.

She felt horrible. And she felt even more horrible for feeling that way. Everyone was so happy for Leon when they heard the news. It was a happy story in a tale of woe. She should have felt happy for Leon.

Not jealous.


	64. Rebuilding Memories

"There."

She spotted just the piece she was looking for and snatched it up. She strapped it to her back before heading back to her 'workshop'. It was the last piece. She would finally be able to build the damn thing now.

Once she had dropped off the last piece of wood she went back to Leon's house. She was too tired to do any work tonight; what she needed now was sleep.

When she slipped into her room there was someone sitting on the floor near her bedroll. She was a little surprised to see it was Leon.

She had hardly spoken two words to him since his reunion with Rinoa a couple of days ago. She was afraid to talk to him; afraid she would say something nasty out of fear. That and he had been busy with Rinoa. He hardly had time to waste on annoying little Yuffie.

"What are you doing in my room Leon?" She asked. "Or should I call you Squall now?"

He shook his head. "Leon is my name now."

Yuffie sat cross legged on her mat and watched him. "What's up?"

"Do you remember a green room?" He asked.

A green room. The Green Room. "Yeah. I remember it." Yuffie said excitedly. "It was my room at the hotel!" She remembered now – the three rooms – red, green, and blue. The hotel.

Leon rubbed his chin. "The hotel... we bought the hotel didn't we?"

Yuffie nodded. "And do you remember – white mushrooms would appear in the one room all the time. We couldn't rent it out." When Leon nodded she smiled. Her chest felt a little better. Maybe he would tell her to leave eventually. Maybe she wasn't needed any longer since Rinoa had arrived, but she had lived nine years with Leon. Nine years of memories to regain together.

Piece by piece, room by room, they would put their memories back together.


	65. Black and White Dog

It was the finding that was hard. Once she had all the pieces it was easy enough to create the thing she saw in her mind. Well, not exactly the thing she saw in her mind. It never came out quite as she imagined it.

She was almost done.

She returned home in the early morning hours. There was still light coming from Leon's room, and she could see two silhouettes through the window. She looked away and slipped into her room without a sound.

She lay in bed but couldn't sleep. She could hear voices from the room down the hall. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to ignore them, tried to sleep. She wished she had a dog.

A dog...

Her lower lip trembled and she tried not to cry as the memory of black and white dogs came back to her. They were all lost, but in the end, the Dalmatians at least were found.

But she felt suddenly far away, after the closeness she had felt a few nights ago. How could she tell him now?


	66. Something Useful

Leon and Rinoa stood in their room, staring at Yuffie's creation. Zell was standing behind them, by the looks of it, trying not to laugh.

"It's..." Rinoa trailed off, unsure.

"A bed frame." Leon finished for her. Yuffie grinned. She didn't feel bad that no one else got it. She knew she wasn't very good. Leon looked at her. "But, why don't you keep it in your room?"

"Because I made it for you." Yuffie said.

Rinoa smiled, but Leon looked puzzled. "Why?" He asked.

"Because..."

_I love you._

"Because you deserve something for putting me up." Yuffie answered. "And besides, I'll be making one for myself later, and it will be much better."

Leon shook his head at her. Well, let him. It was better for him to think she was self centered than for for him to realize the truth. Yuffie sighed inwardly and smiled brightly at him and Rinoa. "You can buy a mattress at the marketplace. It will probably be impossible to find one that's the right size, but I figure if you get one that's close it should be good enough. Better than the floor anyway. And it's actually quite sturdy." To prove her point Yuffie got up and balanced on the headboard. Zell started forward, ready to catch her when the whole thing collapsed, but as with the table and everything else she had made, its appearance belied its sturdiness and there was no collapse. She jumped off and faced the room with pride at her handiwork.

"I'm no Geppetto." She said. "But I can make something useful at least."


	67. Laughter

She could hear laughter down the hall. How she wished there were other guests in the house so she could pretend it was someone else.

It wasn't fair. Why did Rinoa have to show up just as she realized she loved Leon? Why did she have to love Leon in the first place?

She rolled onto her stomach and sighed. She could think of a million reasons. Because he was brave, and he cared about others. Because he was selfless. Because he had asked her if she was coming. Because he loved black and white puppies...

She sprang up into a crouch as she heard the window opening. Who the hell could that be, at this time of night?

A figure came through the window and dropped to the ground softly. A ninja as well? She was about to pounce when he spoke.

"Yuffie! I just remembered the Dalmatians!"

Yuffie squinted in the darkness. "Leon?" She asked. "What the hell are you doing?"

He was silent for a moment, and then she heard him laughing. Laughing... It wasn't his laugh she had heard down the hall.

"I guess this is weird of me." He said. "I just got so excited... How unlike me." He said. "You must be rubbing off on me."

Yuffie laughed and punched his shoulder. "You say that like it's a bad thing."


	68. Breaking Up

A week later Rinoa left.

"Well... I guess we'll see you around." She said as she stood in the doorway. Zell was beside her, frowning because he had somehow ended up carrying all the bags. Rinoa hugged Leon, and hugged Yuffie and then left.

Leon closed the door and walked away, but Yuffie stood by the door a minute longer, in shock. "Uh..." She pointed at the door. What had just happened? Why was Rinoa leaving? What happened to Leon and Rinoa's love story? Crossing the stars, the universe...

"Why is she leaving?" Yuffie asked, turning to follow Leon. "I thought you guys were... Why aren't you going after her?"

Leon sat down and started polishing his gunblade. "It's been nine years Yuffie." He said.

Yuffie crouched in front of Leon and stuck out her tongue. "Yeah I know. That's why it was so romantic see?"

Leon just shook his head. "Nine years is a long time. People change – feelings change. We were just kids."

"Yeah but..."

"We just don't love each other anymore Yuffie." Leon said, sounding almost angry. "That's all."

Yuffie sat and watched Leon in silence for a moment. Why did he sound angry? Could it be that he was still in love with Rinoa – that she had dumped him? He was acting awfully nonchalant after watching the love of his life walk out his door with another man. "Oh that's it!" Yuffie exclaimed. "She loves Zell!"

Leon looked up at Yuffie. "You're not serious?" Yuffie tilted her head to the side questioningly. Leon went on. "You just figured that out?"

Yuffie opened her mouth, but she just couldn't think of anything to respond with. She shut her mouth and without saying another word stood up and left the room.

Once she was gone Leon allowed himself a smile.


	69. Mending Roofs

She and Leon were working on a project together. Roofs. Leon did most of the hammering boards and shingles into place, while she hauled everything up to him. She was sitting at the end of the roof opposite the one he was working on, swinging her legs over the edge, and watching him work. He looked so intense, concentrating on his work. It was almost hypnotic, watching his arm, swinging up and down, the beat of the hammer...

"Why haven't you been home?" Leon asked, shaking her out of her trance.

'I am home.' Yuffie wanted to answer, but instead she just gave him a confused look. "What do you mean? You want me to leave or what? Because I will take all my furniture with me." She threatened.

Leon held up his hands. "Oh no, anything but that. Please, don't take the furniture." He said dryly.

When he didn't say anything more Yuffie jumped to his roof to sit beside him. "What do you mean?" She asked again.

"I mean the pagoda." He said.

Yuffie sighed dramatically. "Too many bad memories." She said, and turned away.

"Liar." Leon said. Yuffie twirled back to face him with a suspicious glare. He looked up at her and said, "You still don't really remember what happened that night. Do you?"

"Oh look at that." Yuffie said, jumping away. "Looks like you're out of nails. Let me go get you some more."

Leon looked down at the pile of nails beside his knee and shook his head.


	70. Words

Why hadn't she been back to the pagoda?

She didn't have a reason really. She just didn't want to go there. In a way, she guessed she was afraid of it. She was afraid that if she went back there, she would remember. There were some things best left alone.

She heard Leon coming home and going to bed. She listened to the sounds of him settling in while she lay in bed. Why did he ask?

It was all quiet for a moment, and then she heard him getting up again. His footsteps sounded down the hall, getting closer. She waited for him to pass by, but instead the door opened.

"Yuffie." He said.

She sat up and looked at him. Seeing she was awake, he seated himself by the door.

"I thought you should know... I understand."

Yuffie tilted her head. "What?"

"I understand why you don't want to go home. It was the same for me. I never wanted to return to this place. I guess, I was scared. My family died here, while I could do nothing but watch. This house... I thought it would be a terrible place. But then you came in here, and filled it with your stupid furniture and I realize now that it's just a house. It's a building. No matter what horrible things happened here in the past, it's still just stone and wood."

Yuffie was silent. When was the last time she had heard Leon make a speech like that? She felt like she had just witnessed something very special, and she smiled.

"Thanks Leon." She said. Leon made to stand up, but she had to ask, "Whose room was this? Before the invasion."

Leon looked around. "It was my sister's." He said quietly. They were both silent for a moment, then Leon stood and went to leave.

Yuffie didn't want him to leave. Looking at his back filled her with such pain and loneliness all of a sudden. She jumped up and hugged him from behind. Leon didn't move.

"I'm sorry Leon." She cried. "I'm so sorry."


	71. What We Need

"You know what we need?"

"Better breakfast." Cid answered. The gang was all gathered for breakfast before going off to work, and Yuffie had an idea she wanted to pitch.

"Yes, there's that." She conceded, and went on. "But what I was going to say before Cid so rudely interrupted me was, we need a funeral."

Everyone around the breakfast table stared at her blankly.

"Or something like a funeral." She said. "For everyone who died in the Heartless' raid nine years ago. Everyone was thrown about after that; no one really had a chance to say goodbye. I think it would be good for everyone."

Cid frowned. "Is it bad that I actually think Yuffie has a good idea for once?" He asked.

Aerith smiled and shook her head. "Of course not Cid. I think it's a good idea too."

Merlin seconded Aerith, as did Cloud. Leon said nothing; he just nodded.

"Cool." Yuffie said. "So... I'll arrange that."


	72. Many Funerals

It took her a couple of days. She recruited a few people from town, to help make wreaths and a sort of altar. She collected as many mementos as she could. She found that everyone was willing to help, and that many had things from the past, things to remind them of their lost ones. She scrounged up candles and photographs, and in a couple of days everything was ready.

The whole town gathered in the marketplace. It made her realize how much they had lost, seeing the small group of people; all that was left.

They spent the day remembering. Yuffie had enlisted the help of a couple of cooks to prepare food for the day, so that no one had to worry about those things today. Today was for remembering, and saying goodbye.

The sun set and silence fell over the group. Everyone stopped talking to watch. Yuffie walked up to the altar and lit the candles. For another moment, no one spoke, and then a man walked forward.

"Would it be alright, if I said a few words?" He asked. Yuffie nodded.

"Of course."

He told everyone about his wife, who had been killed in the attacks. They had been married four years, and she was going to give birth. If she had escaped with him, he would have had a nine year old child.

When he was finished his story he turned to the altar and bowed his head. "Goodbye Cynthia." He said, and stepped away.

A woman went up to the front and told her story, followed by a mother and her two children who did the same. One by one, all the townspeople went up and told their story and said goodbye to their lost loved ones.

Yuffie went up. "I used to live in the pagoda, with my dad. I never really came out before. I never met many of you; if this hadn't happened, I don't know that I ever would have." She looked for Leon in the crowd, but she couldn't find him. "My mom died when I was very little, so I grew up with my dad. He was my only family. He was... everything. We didn't always get along, and I didn't always show him respect, but I always loved him. I still love him." She turned to the altar and pressed her palms together and bowed. "Goodbye old man."


	73. No Speeches

"You didn't give a speech."

"I didn't need to. I already said my goodbyes."

Yuffie sighed. The funerals had been a success, in their own sense. Everyone had thanked her afterwards; told her what a good idea it had been. It was just what they had needed, they said, to really let go of the past and move forward.

Everyone that is, except Leon.

Well, she had stopped expecting him to talk long ago. She didn't really expect him to say anything to her. She just hoped he would.


	74. Eternity

Leon came home late one night to find Yuffie lying on the roof. At first he felt a little pang of worry, wondering if something had happened; if she had collapsed up there or something, and he jumped up to see if she was ok.

She turned her head to look at him when she noticed him. "Oh hi Leon." She said and turned back to the stars. "Care to join me?"

Leon looked down at her. "What are you doing?" He asked.

She shrugged – as well as anyone can shrug when she's lying on her back. "Looking at the stars. I was carving before, but I stopped when I noticed all the stars. I thought; I haven't really looked at the stars in years. I could never really see them in Traverse Town."

Leon got down and lay beside her. For a minute they were both silent. Yuffie smiled. It was nice. It wasn't often that she just stopped and was silent. She felt like she was always going, always talking, always doing something; fixing this, carving that. Day in and day out – it was never ending. She knew that Leon was the same. He never took breaks. She was glad he was taking one now, with her.

"You're right." Leon said at last.

Yuffie turned her head to look at him, but he continued looking at the stars. She wanted to ask, _right about what? _But she didn't want to ruin the moment. She just wanted to stay. She wished that moment could last forever.


	75. They're Back

Yuffie pulled Leon away from his work. She had something very important to show him. She grabbed his hand and pulled him out of the city and out into the old ruins. She stopped when they reached a vantage point from which she could show him.

"What is this about?" Leon asked.

Yuffie waved her hand at him, motioning him to be quiet and watch. He was silent for a while, frowning at the horizon, before he got tired and turned back to her. "I don't see anything Yuffie. I have to get back-"

"There!" Yuffie yelled, jumping and pointing into the distance. "Did you see that?"

By the look on his face, he had seen it.

"They're back Leon." Yuffie said, seeing the little spot of darkness in the distance. "The Heartless are back."


	76. Making Plans

They gathered in Merlin's house to discuss the return of the Heartless. Not just Yuffie and her friends, but most of the townspeople as well – Leon thought it was important that they know what was going on as well.

"This can't be happening. It can't happen again!" Someone cried. There was a murmur of panicked assent from the crowd.

"It's not going to happen again." Leon said calmly, silencing the room. He stood up and faced everyone. Yuffie looked up at him, her heart catching in her throat. She knew how much he had been hurt in the last attack. She knew how much he couldn't allow it to happen again.

"Things are different now." Leon went on. "We know what to expect – we're not the same people we were nine years ago. This time will be different."

Cid stood up next to Leon and nodded. "We can protect ourselves now that we know they're coming. We'll put our rebuilding on hold for a little while in order to build our defences. Don't worry – we'll be fine."

Someone started to clap. Yuffie looked for the source and found Rinoa clapping and smiling up at Leon and Cid. Others started to join in, until everyone gathered there was cheering for Leon and Cid, their fearless leaders.


	77. Explanations

Rinoa got Yuffie's attention after the meeting and motioned for her to follow. Yuffie walked beside Rinoa back to the older woman's house. It was one of the old repaired houses, with bits and pieces of new wall and a new roof. They none of them looked very good, but they were liveable, and that was all they needed for now.

Rinoa showed Yuffie inside. Yuffie felt a small pang of jealousy, seeing how beautiful Rinoa's house was; how cozy and full of furniture and things it was. It looked like a home – nothing like Leon's house.

"Come this way." Rinoa said, pulling back a curtain that acted as a door between the living room and the bedroom. Yuffie followed Rinoa into the dimly lit room, wondering what it was she wanted. Inside, Zell lay in bed, looking very sickly.

"What happened?" Yuffie asked, walking closer to Zell. Rinoa held her back and went to Zell herself.

"I'm not sure what it is." Rinoa said, holding Zell's hand. "And I don't know if it's contagious, so you shouldn't get too close. Just in case."

Yuffie made to step forward again anyway, but Rinoa held out her hand. "Please Yuffie." She said, in such a way that Yuffie couldn't say no to her. "I didn't bring you here to ask for your help. I just wanted you to know, so that if..." Rinoa hung her head. She looked so tired and defeated; Yuffie wanted to tell her not to despair, but Rinoa went on before she had a chance. "We won't be fighting this fight." She said. "Not this time. I just want you to understand why."

Yuffie licked her lips, a nervous gesture. What should she say? Why had Rinoa brought her here? Why not Leon? He would know what to do; Yuffie was just lost, and floundering. "What can I do?" She asked.

Rinoa looked up at Yuffie and smiled. "You can fight. Make sure that Hollow Bastion is still alive for us when we come out of this sickness. Don't think that this is going to beat Zell and me. It's just going to keep us out of the war for a little while."

Yuffie nodded. "I never doubted you." She said.

Rinoa smiled and nodded. "Thank you." She said quietly. "Now go, and please don't tell Leon."

Yuffie nodded and left quickly, so as not to show her confusion to Rinoa. Rinoa watched the young woman go and smiled. She turned as Zell stirred in his sleep and murmured something she didn't quite hear.

"It's ok. We'll be just fine." She said softly, squeezing his hand. "Yuffie will take care of him."


	78. This sucks

Leon was out when Yuffie got home. She paused for a moment in the doorway of his room, looking in at the empty space, before walking in. She walked across the room to his bed, where she flopped face down on his mattress.

It smelled like him. In some strange, stupid way, that made her feel safe. Her brain knew that there was no way this bed could be safe, with the threat of another Heartless attack – what good was a smell to defend her? But it didn't matter what her brain knew, her body relaxed as she breathed in Leon's smell, thinking it was safe here.

"This sucks." She mumbled into the mattress.


	79. Comfort

Leon came home; ready to fall into bed and sleep for days, but when he walked into his room he found his bed was occupied.

"Yuffie." He said, thinking she was awake, waiting to tell him about a memory she had recovered, or to whine about the reappearance of the Heartless. "What is it now?" He asked, walking over to her and looking down at her with his hands on his hips.

"Yuffie?" He leaned closer and realized she was asleep. Her eyelids twitched as she slept; she was dreaming.

_"Old man!" She yelled, but Godo didn't turn. He kept running, running away from her. Why was he running away? She was just a child, so little, how could he expect her to live without him? She ran after him, but her legs were too short, and she couldn't keep up. "Daddy..."_

Leon frowned when he heard Yuffie talking in her sleep. Bad dreams again. He had hoped things would be different here, once they got home. How many nights had he woken up in the middle of the night in the old hotel in Traverse Town, to hear Yuffie crying out in her sleep? How many times had he gone to her, to smooth the frown from her brow and ease her back into a dreamless sleep?

Leon sat next to Yuffie and gathered the sleeping girl in his arms. He didn't say anything to comfort her; he didn't want to wake her. She didn't need to know. Yuffie reached out and grabbed his wrist and murmured something in a language he didn't understand. Leon started to rock back and forth slowly, humming an old lullaby to her until she calmed down and let go of his wrist. The frown line down the middle of her brow went away and she grew still.

Leon put her down and got out of the bed. Yuffie whimpered for a second before falling silent again. He stood and watched her for a moment, making sure that she was truly asleep now, that she wasn't going to have any more bad dreams that night, and then he turned and walked out the door.

"_Don't go." Yuffie called, but there was no one to answer her. Her dad was gone. Her guardian angel was gone._


	80. Doesn't Matter

Yuffie woke up feeling unusually groggy. Most of the time, she would wake up feeling ready to go, ready to do another day of work. Most days, she didn't feel like sleeping any longer on her mat than she needed to.

But she was much more comfortable this morning than most days.

"Oh God." She realized at last where she was and got out of bed quickly. Leon's bed.

She went through the house, but she couldn't find him anywhere, so she went out to Merlin's house. His house had been decided upon as the base of operations in this fight against the Heartless.

When she got there, everyone was already gathered around the big screen Cid had set up on the wall.

"Good morning sleepyhead." Aerith greeted Yuffie warmly. Cid grunted something rude about her being late and irresponsible, a typical teenager. Leon didn't even look her way.

Cid was explaining the defensive system he was planning to set up in town. He explained that it would detect Heartless and basically hunt them down. It wouldn't kill them, he said, but it would make killing them a lot easier.

Yuffie sidled up to Leon during Cid's explanation and whispered in his ear. "Leon, sorry about last night. I didn't mean to fall asleep in your bed."

Leon shook his head and motioned her to be quiet. "It doesn't matter Yuffie." He said quietly, effectively shutting her up.

'It doesn't matter.'

Yuffie sighed mentally and listened to the rest of Cid's idea.


	81. Only Mattress

A couple of night later Yuffie found herself at Leon's door. What would she use as an excuse tonight, she wondered. There wasn't anyone staying with them now, so she couldn't complain that her room was full.

She knocked on the door and walked in without waiting for an answer. "Leon?"

"Yes?" His voice floated out from somewhere in his bed. "What do you want now?"

"Can I sleep with you tonight?" She asked.

"But Yuffie..." He mumbled. "The age difference..."

Yuffie blinked at him. "What...?"

Leon sat up and stared at her. "Never mind. Why would you want to sleep with me?"

Yuffie stepped forward. "It's not fair that you get the only real mattress in the house while I have to sleep on a mat! I made the bed after all."

"And you gave it to me."

"Yeah, but we live together, so it's kind of mine too!"

Leon scratched his head. "So now you're laying claim to my things?" He asked slowly.

Yuffie flushed. Why was he being so difficult? "Just let me sleep with you!" She said.

Leon shrugged and flopped over, leaving plenty of room for Yuffie to lie down beside him. Yuffie stared at the spot he had left for a little while before walking over to the bed. She stared at Leon's back, watching the moonlight falling across his bare shoulders.

She blushed again. Bare shoulders... He wasn't wearing a shirt! What if he wasn't wearing pants too?

"I'll go get my blanket!" She exclaimed suddenly and was about to run back to her own room.

"Don't bother." Leon mumbled. "Mine is big enough."

Yuffie gulped and clenched her fists. She was being stupid! She had seen Leon without a shirt plenty of times; this should be no different. She kept repeating that to herself as she crawled into bed beside Leon. 'It's no different Yuffie. No different.'

She was quiet, listening to Leon breathe. She thought he was asleep, and nearly jumped out of her skin when he said, "Good night Yuffie. I hope you're comfortable."

"Oh yes!" Yuffie answered sharply. "This is much better than that little mat I usually sleep on. What fine craftsmanship went into making this bed frame!"

Leon said nothing, and eventually, finally, Yuffie fell asleep.


	82. Familiar

There was something familiar about sleeping with Leon. Yuffie couldn't put her finger on it, so she just pushed it away. It didn't really matter. It was probably just because she had known Leon for so long; he was familiar.

It was comforting.

She didn't want to admit it, but she was scared. Who knew what would happen now? Would there be another Heartless attack? It was on everyone's mind, and no one wanted to have to leave their homes again.

She felt responsible. She had to fight this time; she had to protect not only her new home, but everyone else.

She knew now how Leon felt.


	83. Gravity

"Do you ever think about gravity?" Yuffie asked.

Leon looked up at Yuffie. "Not especially." He answered.

Yuffie shrugged. "Lately, I've been thinking about gravity." She said. "It's kind of weird, don't you think?" She pushed a pebble off the edge of the cliff with the toe of her boot. "What if gravity stopped working? And the whole world turned upside down like the falls at the base of the castle?"

"I don't really think this is the time for this talk." Leon said, hefting his gunblade.

Yuffie spared a glance for the Heartless that had found their way up from the crater and were approaching the town. She turned back to Leon. "But seriously, would it be possible to recreate the effect of the falls?" She asked.

"I don't know Yuffie." He said.

Yuffie looked back at the Heartless and pulled out her giant shuriken. "Oh well. I just thought... I think I would like the feeling of flying."


	84. Don't Go

Yuffie woke up in the middle of the night, a bad feeling niggling at her stomach. She got out of bed and checked on Leon, but he was still asleep. For a second she stared at his back, rising and falling in the night, and she wanted to get into bed beside him and go back to sleep, but she walked away.

There was something going on.

She walked out into the night. Could it be another Heartless attack? There was no sign of Heartless anywhere.

She jumped onto the roof to get a better look around. The moon was so bright that night, she could see everything. She could see him across the city, walking away.

Cloud.

She ran after him, panic beating in her chest. Not again. This couldn't be happening again. She felt somehow, that if Cloud was leaving again, then the Heartless would attack again as well, and the city would be destroyed once more. If he left, everything would be repeated, and she couldn't go through it again.

"Cloud!"

He turned slowly, his cape blowing in the wind. "Yuffie? What are you doing up?"

"I felt something." She explained. "You're not leaving are you?" She asked.

Cloud looked away, out at the castle in the distance. Yuffie stepped closer. If she had to she would tackle him to stop him from leaving...

"You can't!" She said. "What about Aerith? You can't leave her again."

Cloud turned back to her. "Don't worry. I'm staying." He reassured her. "It's just sometimes I think I remember a girl... I don't know where she is."

Yuffie smiled and took his hand, leading him back to town. "Trust me when I say I know the feeling. But don't worry," she said, patting him on the back, "it'll come back to you."


	85. Sora's Back

Yuffie was with Aerith when she remembered Sora. She wanted to run and find Leon to tell him about Sora, but she wouldn't go to him. She couldn't let him know how she felt.

"Sora's back!" Aerith suddenly exclaimed.

Yuffie turned to Aerith, wide eyed with surprise. "You remember him too?"

Aerith nodded. "I hope this is a good sign." She said.

Yuffie turned and looked towards the old castle. "I hope so too." She said quietly, and then turned back to Aerith. "Come on, let's go tell the others!"


	86. Not Good

Leon was alone when he remembered Sora. He was actually on his way to find Yuffie when Merlin found him.

"Oh Leon! I'm so glad I found you!" Merlin called. "Come have a cup of tea and a spot to eat while we discuss this interesting young man we just remembered."

Leon had looked out at the city for a moment before shaking his head and turning to follow Merlin. Not good, he said to himself. Not good.


	87. Discussion

As it turned out, they didn't need to tell the others; the others already knew. When Aerith and Yuffie got to Merlin's house they found Cid and Leon and Merlin already waiting for them.

"So you two remember too eh?" Cid asked, looking up from a cup of tea. Merlin must have made tea when people started showing up.

Yuffie nodded. Aerith sat down and poured a cup of tea. She passed it to Yuffie and then poured herself another cup.

Yuffie didn't sit. She was too excited. She balanced her cup on her fingertip as she paced the room, her mind racing ahead of her. "What does it mean?" She asked. "It must have something to do with the Heartless returning." She turned to the others. "How come we're all remembering him now?"

"Would you sit down?" Cid asked grumpily. "Just watching you is tiring me out."

Aerith smiled calmly. "I think we'll be getting a visit soon." She said.

As if in answer to her comment the door opened and a shadow fell across the room. Everyone turned to look, and Yuffie almost clapped her hands at Aerith's fortune telling, until she saw it was just Cloud.

"Sora?" He asked. Everyone nodded. Sunlight slanted into the room as he moved away from the doorway, and then the door shut and the room darkened again. Yuffie stared at the darkness. It seemed important somehow...

Aerith patted the spot next to her and Cloud sat down beside her. Yuffie watched them together, feeling a little envious. It was so ridiculous; she was only seventeen and she was feeling lovesick. Blowing her bangs off her forehead she joined the others and drank her tea while they discussed.


	88. Love

Yuffie pushed the door open. It creaked loudly as it swung open; no wonder it wasn't locked. It wasn't needed.

"Hello?" She heard a voice from inside and breathed a little sigh of relief.

"Hi! It's me, Yuffie!" She called.

Rinoa appeared at the doorway a moment later, looking worried. "What are you doing here?" She asked.

"I just wanted to ask you..." Yuffie trailed off. Now that she was here, it was too embarrassing. She couldn't ask.

"Go ahead." Rinoa pressed. "You've come all this way."

"How are you guys doing?" Yuffie asked.

Rinoa waved Yuffie in to the back room where Zell was sitting. She smiled at Zell, a very tired looking smile, but full of caring all the same. "I think we're getting better." She said, sitting down next to Zell.

Yuffie leaned against the wall and watched them for a moment. "How did you know?" She asked. Rinoa and Zell both looked up and Yuffie blushed. "I mean, how did you guys fall in love?"

Rinoa grinned at Zell. "Well, when I first woke up after the Heartless attack, I was on top of him."

"And I was half naked." Zell put in. "I was still in my pyjamas."

Rinoa looked up at Yuffie. "We spent nine years together, surviving in space, always traveling, always fighting for our lives. I guess I grew to depend on him so much that at some point my trust turned to love. I don't know what point exactly though." She said.

Zell smiled. "I think it was that one time you walked in on me showering." He said. Rinoa punched him in the arm.

"Nine years..." Yuffie thought. Nine years it had been.

"Yes. Nine years is a long time." Rinoa said.

"You sound just like Leon." Yuffie told her. "He said the same thing, when I asked him why you didn't stay."

Zell and Rinoa exchanged a glance. Yuffie didn't catch their silent communication, but they both smiled. Maybe it was some inside joke or something.

"Well, anyway," Yuffie said, turning away, "I should get going. I just wanted to make sure you guys are alright. Lots of work left to do." She waved and went outside. She stood staring at the sun until she could no longer see his face when she closed her eyes.


	89. Rain

"It's going to rain." Yuffie said.

Leon looked up at the sky and then back at Yuffie, a dubious look on his face. "It's a perfectly clear day." He said. "Why would you say that?"

"My wrist tells me so." Yuffie answered.

Leon shook his head. "Yuffie, you sprained your wrist once. That's not the kind of injury that gives you weather foreseeing abilities."

Yuffie just smiled. "Say whatever you like Leon, it's going to rain."

Sure enough, a few hours later they were running home through the rain.

"I hope you're happy." Leon said.

"Of course not!" Yuffie responded. "I'm soaking!"


	90. Mama Leon

Yuffie sat by the window, staring out at the rain. Leon was at the stove, making soup. Every once in a while Yuffie reached out to wipe the condensation off the window.

"When I said it was going to rain, I never imagined it would be like this." She said.

"Hm." Leon agreed.

Yuffie turned to watch him stirring the soup. "Can I go outside... mom?" She asked, unable to resist, seeing him in such a position.

He turned around with a hand on his hip, waving the soup ladle at her. "If you go out in rain like that, you'll catch your death of cold." He scolded.

Yuffie burst out laughing. Leon even cracked a smile. Unable to face him anymore she turned and leaned her forehead against the window. Even then, she couldn't help the giggles that escaped her. "Too funny..." She gasped. "Mama Leon."


	91. Frozen

It was still raining. Yuffie sat up in the middle of the night and stared out her bedroom window. The rain was so loud on the roof; she couldn't sleep. She hoped everyone's roofs were holding up alright in the downpour. She hoped the Heartless wouldn't use this weather as cover for an attack.

Suddenly feeling anxious, she climbed out of bed and out the window. She didn't bother to get dressed; she was going to get soaked no matter what she wore. When she got home she would change.

The town was empty, and all the roofs seemed to be in good condition. Yuffie heaved a sigh of relief and turned towards the castle. She would take a quick look to assure herself that the Heartless weren't advancing and then she would go to bed.

When she got to the edge of the city she saw a lone figure down in the valley, coming towards the town. It looked unlike any Heartless she had ever seen before, and that usually meant bad news. The new ones were always tougher than the old ones for some reason.

She pulled out her giant shuriken and threw it at the figure, jumping down the cliff after it. She would finish it off and then go to bed. She hoped it wouldn't take too long.

But as she watched the Heartless took out a sword and knocked her shuriken out of the air. Yuffie landed on the ground in a crouch, ready to spring out at the enemy. The figure walked closer, and now that she saw it up close, it looked kind of familiar. That walk...

"Leon?"

Leon bent to pick up her shuriken and stared at her. "Yuffie, what are you doing? It told you not to go out in this rain." He said.

Yuffie held out her hand for her shuriken, but Leon held it at his side. "Well, you're not my mother." She answered. "And besides, why are you out here?"

"I..." Leon shrugged and looked back at the crater.

Yuffie nodded. "Yeah, me too. I couldn't sleep until I was sure." She said.

Leon held out her shuriken at last. "Let's get back. You really will catch a cold, especially dressed like that."

Yuffie looked down at her body, suddenly embarrassed to be out in nothing more than her underwear, and soaked, and in front of Leon. Leon didn't seem to notice however, and started walking back towards the town.

Leon shook his head at her. "What would you have done if I really was a Heartless?" He asked. "You're completely vulnerable in those clothes."

Yuffie hung back. Now that the excitement was over, her teeth had started to chatter, and she didn't want Leon to hear. She wouldn't admit her weakness to him. Also, if she walked behind him then he couldn't see her in such a state of undress.

Leon stopped suddenly and turned back to her. Yuffie froze on the spot, still except for her chattering teeth. "Look at you; you're frozen." Leon said. He held out his hand. "Come on, let's get you home."


	92. Warming Up

Leon started a fire in the oven and sat Yuffie down beside it. He told her to sit there while he went to get her a blanket. Yuffie stared after him, and felt an urge to go after him and hug him. She settled for staring into the fire.

Leon came back soon after and dropped a blanket on her lap. "Let's have some soup." He said and went to the stove to warm some up. Yuffie wrapped the blanket around herself. She smiled lazily to herself; it was always so nice to warm up after being so cold.

"You can sleep with me tonight." Leon said, stirring the soup. "If only so that I can make sure you don't run outside again. Honestly, you should know better..."

Yuffie was quiet. He wondered if maybe he was being too harsh. But it was only because he worried, and he knew that she could handle it. She was a lot tougher than her happy-go-lucky exterior led people to believe.

When the soup started to bubble he ladled it into two bowls and turned around to give one to Yuffie. That's when he noticed she was asleep. No wonder; the only time Yuffie was quiet was when she was sleeping.

He set the soup on the table and watched her for a second. She was sleeping soundly, no longer even shivering. He smiled; that was good then.


	93. Stupid

Yuffie was woken up in the middle of the night by shaking. In her half sleeping daze she wondered if maybe it was an earthquake. When she roused herself a bit more though, she realized that it was Leon, shivering next to her.

She looked around for a moment, taking stock of her situation. She was in Leon's bed. She must have fallen asleep at the table when he brought her inside, and he had brought her to bed.

"You big stupid." She murmured. "You're the one who's freezing."

"I am not." Leon answered sleepily. His teeth chattered even as he spoke. "You're the one who is going to catch a cold. Don't go outside."

Yuffie lifted a hand to his forehead. "You have a fever." She said with a laugh. "You got a fever because you went out in the rain."

"No." Leon answered. Yuffie smiled and moved closer to him.

"Don't worry," Yuffie said, putting her arms around him, "there comes a time in every child's life when she grows up and looks after her mother."

"Not once." Leon muttered as he wrapped his arms around Yuffie's shoulders.

"Hm?"

"Not once have I thought of you as a child." He murmured into her shoulder as he fell back into unconsciousness.


	94. A Couple More Minutes

Yuffie was surprised in the morning to find Leon sleeping in her arms. Not only that, but his arms were still around her.

She lifted her head from his chest to look at his face, and he was still asleep. She smiled. He needed the rest more than anyone.

She knew she really should get out of bed. She knew that he probably wouldn't want to wake up in this position, knowing Leon. Still, she just didn't want to move away, not yet.

Just a couple more minutes...


	95. Board Games and Breakfast

"Yuffie wake up."

Yuffie opened her eyes to see her arms were now empty. She felt a pang of loss as she sat up and looked around to see Leon standing by the window.

"It's still raining." He said. He turned and smiled at Yuffie. "Should we stay inside today?" He asked.

Yuffie grinned. "Of course mom." She said. "We wouldn't want to catch a cold."

Leon smiled and shook his head a little. "Well, I guess I'll go make breakfast..."

Yuffie jumped out of bed. "No way! Sick people are not allowed to cook and infect others. _I _will make breakfast! You just get back in bed."

"I'm not sick." He said flatly.

"Well you could have fooled me last night." Yuffie said, and immediately blushed. She quickly turned away and ran to the kitchen to hide her embarrassment from Leon. He probably didn't realize how much it meant to her to have spent a night with him, holding him...

She shook her head, resolving not to think about it too much. Thinking about it too much would only lead to disappointment. She would have to be happy with what she had; she was at least a friend to Leon. At least, she wasn't an annoying little child to him.

"Let's play board games!" She exclaimed.

Leon stared at her blankly. "...board games? Yuffie, where are we even going to get board games?"

"I bet Merlin has lots of board games! Merlin has lots of everything!" Yuffie said triumphantly. She grinned at Leon, who pointedly looked at the window. Yuffie followed his gaze to the rain falling in sheets against the glass. "...Right. Right."


	96. Interrupted

Yuffie didn't have to worry long about how to amuse herself, as soon after her failed suggestion there was a knock at the door, and before either she or Leon could get up to answer it the door burst open and there stood Merlin and Cid, somehow completely dry despite the rain.

"Hey guys!" Yuffie greeted them. "How fortunate that you showed up just now! I was just saying-"

At that moment Cloud and Aerith ran in the door, and they were soaked through.

"How did you manage to stay dry?" Aerith asked Merlin and Cid.

Cid just grunted as Merlin waved his magic wand about. "There have to be some advantages to being the best wizard in the universe my dear." He said. He waved his wand at Aerith and Cloud and their clothes dried in a second.

Cloud sneezed.

Yuffie grinned. "The more the merrier I always say, right Leon?" She said, slapping Leon on the shoulder. Leon said nothing, as usual, but she had the feeling he was annoyed for some reason. It was probably the rain, she thought. He would hate being cooped up all day. Well, she didn't really like it either, but they didn't have much choice.

She turned to Merlin and asked, "Did you bring any board games?"


	97. Going Back

"Hey Leon – guess what!" Yuffie yelled, running up to him as he worked on a drain pipe that had fallen apart in the downpour.

"What?" Leon answered, without looking up.

"The coliseum is back!" Yuffie squealed, hopping up and down. Now that she remembered the coliseum, she remembered how awesome it was.

"Oh really?" Leon asked, seemingly uninterested.

"Oh come on Leon... I know you're not really as cool as you pretend to be. You're just as excited as I am."

"If you say so."

Yuffie stared at him for a little while longer. "...Well?"

"Well what?"

"Are we going to go or what?" She asked. "The next tournament is coming up pretty soon!"

Leon stopped working for a minute to look Yuffie in the eye. "Do you really think this is the time to be going to compete at the coliseum?" He asked. "What if something happened while we were gone?"

Yuffie frowned at Leon. "You know, this town is stronger than you give it credit for." She said. "And besides! You need a break Mr Serious. You need to stop 'remembering' fun and have fun for once, or your face will be stuck in a permanent frown."

Leon stared at Yuffie. "...My face _is _stuck in a permanent frown." He said.

Yuffie managed to hold back her laughter for about half a second before it came ripping out. "You are too funny!" Yuffie laughed, slapping Leon's back. "I love you!"

As soon as she said it her mind formed a panicked blank, but somehow she kept laughing. 'Just keep laughing, pretend it's nothing...' She told herself. 'Just keep laughing.'

Leon turned back to his work, silent again. Yuffie stopped laughing. Oh god, did he realize it was true? Was he disgusted? Would he turn her away now? Her heart stopped beating for a second, watching his back.

"Ok. Let's go." He said.

"...Go?"

"Go to the coliseum." He said. "Unless you don't want to go with a guy whose face is stuck in a frown, then I guess we just won't be able to go..."

"No!" Yuffie exclaimed. "I mean, yes! You're the best Leon! Woo hoo!" She yelled and skipped away. She was going to the coliseum! And this time she wouldn't let Sora off so easy...


	98. Perverted Old Man

Leon rubbed his face. He really was a perverted old man, wasn't he?

"She loves me huh?" He muttered to himself, and sighed. She really was a blabbermouth anyway, though. Saying these things without thinking...

He started to laugh. Not good, right?


	99. Traveling

"Yuffie, please take your feet off the control panel." Leon said flatly.

Yuffie pouted a bit, but did as she was told. After all, it wouldn't do to accidentally hit something now and ruin the whole trip, not when she was so excited.

"I'm so excited!" She squealed. "I can't wait! The coliseum is always so much fun!"

Leon snorted. "I'm amazed you manage to have so much fun every time we go, when you never win."

Yuffie held up a fist determinedly. "But this time will be different!" She declared.

Leon shook his head. Yuffie turned to him angrily. "What?! You think it won't? You don't believe in us?"

"Us?"

"We're going to be a team aren't we?" She asked.

"If you want..."

"Well then! We will definitely beat Sora this time!"

Leon sighed. "You know Yuffie, sometimes I think you're too optimistic."

"No such thing!" She answered. "And besides – you're too pessimistic. You need someone like me around so you don't get too down hearted and give up."

Leon glanced sidelong at Yuffie. She grinned at him and he sighed again.

"Maybe you're right..."


	100. is 100

**Haha, 100 chapters is a lot. A lot more than I expected. I wanted to do something special for Chapter 100, but I couldn't come up with anything, so 100 is 100 words.**

* * *

"Do you think we'll ever go back?"

"Back?"

Yuffie nodded. She was staring out at the stars surrounding the ship. "Yeah. Back to Traverse Town." She almost said, 'Back home.' But it wasn't home, was it? No, home was Hollow Bastion. Home was her life in Leon's house, with the Restoration Committee.

"I wonder if it's all still there."

"Do you remember Geppetto's shop?"

Leon nodded.

"Did you ever see the Yuffie model? It was awesome!"

"I wish we could go back, and he could teach me to carve as well as he does."

Leon smiled dryly. "I do too."


	101. Kissy Kiss

Yuffie fell to her knees and sighed deeply. Once again... Once again... "I can't believe he beat us a third time!" She yelled, shaking her fists at the sky.

Leon held out his hand to her. "Come on Yuffie, there's nothing we can do about it now."

Yuffie took his hand and let herself be pulled to her feet. "It's because the arena changed," she muttered, "I just can't fight well in such a creepy place. It's too depressing."

"Right." Leon said. "Let's just go get our consolation prize and go home."

"Um...Leon?"

Leon turned to look at Yuffie. He realized then that he was still holding her hand and quickly dropped it. "Sorry." He mumbled.

"No, that's not it." Yuffie said, fidgeting. "The thing is... I kind of made a bet with Phil..."

Just then Phil burst into the Underdrome, whooping. "Yuffie! You lost! Now pay up!"

Yuffie shuddered. "Let's run." She said, and started to run towards the ship.

Leon grabbed her before she could get away. "If you lost a bet Yuffie, you should respect it and suffer the consequences."

Yuffie stared at him. Why did he have to say it like that? "Yeah but..." She looked at Phil with a look of fear. "I don't want to."

"Ah! There you are." Phil grinned as he trotted up to them. "I'm here for my payment."

Yuffie stared at him for a moment. Phil closed his eyes and stood on his tiptoes. Yuffie looked at Leon, hoping for help, but Leon just stared back unsympathetically. Yuffie leaned down towards Phil...

Just as she was about to kiss his cheek, Phil grabbed Yuffie by the ears and gave her a big, sloppykiss on the lips. As she had expected from a goat man, it wasn't even a good kiss – in fact, it was disgusting.

She leaped back and wiped her mouth. Leon was staring at them open mouthed, no doubt trying to hold back his laughter.

"Good enough, you old pervert?" She asked, and ran towards the ship. Never again would she make a bet with goat men.


	102. Trip Back

Yuffie sat in sullen silence as Leon prepared the ship for takeoff. She had already brushed her teeth and gargled mouthwash before Leon had recovered and gotten into the ship. And now, all she wanted to do was forget that kiss had ever happened.

They were halfway through the trip when Leon cleared his throat.

"He's a sleazy old goat ok?" She exclaimed, sure he was just trying not to laugh. "It's not like I expected to lose the bet!"

Leon smiled. "So you don't like sleazy old goats?"

"Of course not!" Yuffie said, making a face. "Do you even know how old he is?"

"So it's the old part that bothers you? What if he was a young goat?"

Yuffie narrowed her eyes at Leon. "Are you high?" She asked. "Maybe I should take over the controls."

"No, no, I'm fine." Leon reassured her. "Even if I was high, I'd still be a better driver than you."


	103. Home At Last

Yuffie sighed a deep, contented sigh as they walked in the door. "Feels good to be home." She said.

Leon sighed as well; a sigh not so contented. "Home you say... I suppose that meansyou won't be leaving any time soon, will you?"

Yuffie laughed and slapped him on the back. "You don't mean that!" She told him happily. "If I leave who will build the rest of your furniture? Who will keep you amused all the time? Who will take care of you when you make yourself sick?"

Leon walked away, closing the door to his room behind him.

"You need me!" Yuffie yelled after him. She went to her own room where she flopped down on her mat and stared around at the nearly empty room. This really was her home, for as long as Leon would let her continue living here. It was about time she started making it look like home.


	104. Vanna White

Leon was woken up from his nap by a loud crash down the hall. He looked out into the hall, quickly realizing that the noise was coming from Yuffie's room.

He walked in to find her surrounded by wood in various shapes and sizes. She was hammering a board to the wall when he walked in and didn't even notice him. She was humming.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

She jumped and turned around to look at him guiltily. "I'm uh... making a shelf."

"Yuffie..." Leon said, rubbing his temple.

"I know you don't want me to stay here forever!" She quickly exclaimed. "And I won't! I promise! But I've been here almost a year now, and I still don't have anything nice in my room; I mean, I don't even have a bed! Can't I just do this little thing? And then in the future whoever uses this room after me will have a convenient shelf." She added, showing off the shelf Vanna White-style. "Ta-dah."

Leon shook his head, but he was shaking his head at Yuffie, at how silly she could be, not at the idea. "Do whatever you want. I won't stop you." He said and left.


	105. Strawberries

"Look look!" Yuffie yelled, running into the kitchen with a package held in her hands above her head.

Leon turned. "Oh great... a package." He said dully. What was that supposed to mean to him?

"I said look." Yuffie said, setting the package down on the table. "Keep looking."

Leon watched as she opened the package. Under the brown wrapping was a small brown box which she slowly took the lid off of to reveal...

"Strawberries!" Yuffie squealed. "Real strawberries Leon!"

"Where did you get these?" Leon asked.

"The Item Shop owner had a patch growing in his back yard. He gave these to me for our help with his roof." She drooled as she stared at the strawberries. They were perfectly shaped, and a beautiful bright red colour – they looked like the most delicious things she had seen in a long time. "I love that man."

Leon smiled. 'See?' He told himself. 'It means nothing to her.'

"So what do you think? Should we bake something or just eat them?" She asked, staring at him with wide eyes. "I almost don't want to eat them; they look too good don't they?"

"Don't be silly." Leon told her. "They won't look so perfect for long. Let's eat them for dessert tonight."

"Yay!" Yuffie clapped her hands together and hopped up and down in excitement. "I'm going to take a shower before supper ok?"

Leon nodded and turned back to cooking.

"Strawberries, strawberries, so delicious..." Yuffie sang as she went to the bathroom. She popped in a second later to glare at Leon. "Don't you dare eat any without me!" She said, and was gone to the shower.

Leon smiled. He wondered, what would she do if she came out of the shower and he had eaten all of them already? He shook his head; no matter what, it wasn't worth the risk.


	106. Remorse

It occurred to her suddenly, as she was installing another shelf across from the first one. The thought was so sudden, and the remorse that followed it so strong that she didn't even think before running to Leon's room.

"I'm sorry!" She yelled as she burst in. Leon looked up from a book he was reading. "I'm so sorry!" She repeated, bowing.

"What did you do now?" Leon asked. He thought she was joking, didn't he?

"I didn't even think before doing things – I never think!" She said. "I should have realized you wouldn't want me to do anything to the room. I should never have moved in there in the first place, and now I'm destroying your sister's room. You must hate me for it. Please forgive me."

Leon put his book down on the bed beside him. "Yuffie, are you apologizing for putting up shelves in your room?"

"Yes. Because it's not really my room, right? It was your sister's room. I'm sure it means a lot to you, and here I am, tearing it up..."

Leon sighed. "Yuffie, remember what I told you? This place is no longer a house for my memories; it's a house for us to live in. You don't need to apologize."

Yuffie's lip trembled. Why did Leon always have to be so nice? How would she ever stop loving him if he was so nice to her all the time?

Leon smiled and picked up his book. "In a way, I think I'd like to thank you."

Yuffie leaped across the room to land on top of Leon. She hugged him tightly. "You really are a good guy aren't you Leon?"

"Of course I am." Leon answered. "Who ever said I wasn't?"


	107. Wanderlust

She had talked to Sora that afternoon, when they met in the marketplace. He had told her stories about his adventures so far, and she had started to feel restless soon after. Sometimes, no matter how much she loved her home, no matter how happy she was to be here, she wanted to travel again. "This Tron person sounds neat." She said that night, sitting opposite Leon at the kitchen table.

Leon nodded.

"I'd like to meet him I think." Yuffie said. The smell of coffee filled the kitchen.

Leon nodded.

"Maybe someday we can go there." She said.

Leon nodded.

"I think I'd like to grow a beard." She said. "And do my hair up with forks and become a hermit."

Leon nodded. Yuffie frowned at him until he looked up and grinned at her. "Have fun with that." He said.

Yuffie shook her head. "You suck." She said.

Leon nodded.


	108. Y, R P

**So I was just thinking... Since this story is really just randomness, I'd be open to suggestions, if there's anything you want to see. Anyway, carry on.**

"Look at these charming characters." Merlin said. Three tiny winged girls flew out from behind him to meet the others.

Aerith smiled at how cute they were. Leon and Cloud, as usual, hardly reacted. Yuffie yelped and jumped back.

"What the hell?"

Cid laughed, and quickly coughed to cover it up. Merlin gave Yuffie a stern look and cleared his throat. "Ahem. These three are-"

"Hi everybody! I'm Yuna!"

"Rikku!"

"...Paine."

Yuffie backed away again. "They... talk..." She looked at everyone's face. Why were they so calm? "What the hell?" She asked again.

The one called Rikku flew up to Yuffie. She tilted her head to the side and grinned at Yuffie. "You're funny." She said, laughing.

Yuffie shuddered. She hated bugs. She hated small flying animals, birds, anything with wings basically. They were just so... flighty. Who knew where they'd been; they were so small they could have been anywhere.

Yuffie now had her back against the wall. The three tiny girls had sensed her fear and were crowding around her, laughing and smiling. Yuffie stared at the others, silently asking for help.

Merlin and Cid were staring at Leon. They stared at him for a moment until Leon nodded. Yuffie blinked. "What?" She asked. "What was that?"

"Dummy!" Rikku said, still laughing. "It means we're coming to stay with you guys!"

"Eh?" She looked at Leon. "What?"

Yuna, Rikku and Paine all turned to look at Leon with her. Yuffie tried to get over her fear then, and make friends with them. After all, if they would be living together, it would be easier if they could get along. "I mean... great. Female company at last." She said, sounding unconvincing even to herself.

But Yuna, Rikku and Paine were all staring at Leon still. "Finally," they sighed, "some male company."

Leon didn't seem to notice.


	109. Cockroaches

Leon found Yuffie on the roof, hiding.

"I'm going to kill myself." She muttered as he sat down next to her. She was curled up in a ball, with her knees under her chin. "Or them. Wouldn't it be ok to kill just one of them?" She asked. "There would still be two left after all."

Leon shook his head. "I don't think the situation is going to be remedied with a death." He said.

"You're right." Yuffie answered. "I would have to kill all three of them; just one would be pointless. Only, it would make me feel better."

Leon patted Yuffie's back. "You'll survive." He told her. "You always do."

"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked.

"It means... you're like a cockroach, nothing can kill you."

Yuffie made a face at Leon. "What the hell is that? If you're going to insult me, do it right. Don't make it seem like something else. You're not doing any good trying to be sneaky about it."

Leon scratched his head. "Apparently I'm not very good at compliment's either."

Yuffie stared at him for a moment before bursting out laughing. "Don't tell me that was a compliment. No way. I won't believe it."

Leon sighed. "I just can't win."

Yuffie grinned as she patted Leon's back. "Don't worry about it; even if you never win, you always survive. Cockroach."


	110. Size Matters

"Yuffie, what is your relationship with Leon?"

Yuffie looked up from her work on a broken fence to glare at Rikku. "What?"

"What's your relationship with Leon?" Rikku asked again.

"What's it to you?"

"Are you his girlfriend?" Rikku asked. "His lover? His wife?" Yuffie nearly choked on her tongue. "After all, you live together right? Don't tell me that nothing happens."

Yuffie turned away. She didn't have to take this from a four inch tall girl. But when she turned away from Rikku she found herself face to face with Yuna and Paine. She was surrounded.

"No, nothing!" She yelled, annoyed with these three, and with her own pathetic situation. "There's nothing between us."

"Really?" Rikku asked. Yuffie turned back to Rikku. "I'm so glad!"

Yuffie frowned. "Why is that?"

"Because I like you too Yuffie." Rikku said. Yuna voiced her agreement. "I don't want to be rivals."

"Rivals?" Yuffie asked.

"Rivals in love!" Rikku declared, striking a fighting pose. "But we don't have to worry about that!" She said, dropping the pose and smiling at Yuffie.

"Can we go now?" Paine asked. Rikku and Yuna nodded, and the three girls flew away.

Yuffie stood staring after them. Were they serious about that, about Leon? "But..." She started to whisper, and ended up yelling after the girls, who were too far away to hear already. "Don't you think there's a little problem there!"


	111. Gathering Dark

"Leon."

Leon woke instantly. It was something he had learned in his years on the run, to wake at the ready. "What is it Yuffie?" He asked, not bothering to even sit up, seeing that it was her.

"I just got back from patrol." She said quietly. "Get up and come with me."

Leon dressed quickly, strapping his gunblade to his belt. From the tone of Yuffie's voice, it sounded like something was not right. Once he was ready Yuffie led the way out into the night. As he followed her past Merlin's house, towards the ruins of the castle, he felt a knot of dread growing in his stomach.

She stopped in the same spot she had stopped that other time, months ago, and pointed at the same spot.

"Do you see it?" She asked.

This time Leon did see. "What's going on?" He wondered out loud.

"They're gathering." Yuffie said ominously. When Leon turned to look at her she was shaking.


	112. Bother

"Where did you go last night with Leon?" Rikku asked. 

Yuffie ignored her; she was in no mood for Rikku's antics this morning. Not this morning.

"Come on Yuffie." Rikku prodded. "You went out for a midnight walk, did you think we wouldn't wonder?"

Yuffie looked up at Yuna and Paine, who both looked like they didn't care very much. Well, maybe Yuna cared a little.

"You know, you said there was nothing between you two," Rikku went on, "but I wonder if that's true. I mean, you never said you don't have feelings for Leon."

Yuffie glared at Rikku. "I've lived with him for the past ten years of my life. He gave me a home here. Of course I like him."

"Oh ok." Rikku said, putting a finger to her chin thoughtfully. "But-"

"Rikku." Paine said quietly. "Leave her alone."

Rikku listened.


	113. Waiting

She carved tiny bowls and plates and utensils, to distract her from worrying. She couldn't think; if she thought, she would panic. She needed something to do; there was nothing to do. Nothing to do but wait now.

She hated waiting.


	114. Wishing

Leon woke up in the middle of the night, feeling uneasy. He went out into the hallway, hearing strange noises. Yuffie was crying.

She was in the kitchen, but he didn't go in to her. She would only hide her tears anyway; the great ninja Yuffie didn't cry. Is she knew he was listening she would only laugh, and hurt herself.

She sounded different when she was awake and crying. When she cried out in her sleep she was always a child, living out her past through her dreams. She wasn't crying for her past now, she wasn't crying as a child. She cried now for the future. She cried because she was afraid; she was terrified of the Heartless gathering in the ruined castle. Because she didn't know if she could bear losing her home again.

When the time came, and the wait was over, would they really be ok?

Leon sat in the hall, listening to Yuffie crying in the kitchen. When her sobs finally died down and she fell silent he waited a minute before getting up and going in to check on her. It took him a moment to find her; she was curled up under the table, in the corner of the kitchen. She had cried herself to sleep.

"Yuffie." He said softly. "What are you doing?"

Yuffie made a small noise as she stirred in her sleep. "Leon?"

"You were sleep walking Yuffie." He said, smiling at her sleepy face. "I swear, next I'll be finding you on the roof in the mornings."

Yuffie smiled lazily, still not quite awake. Leon held out his hand. "Come on Yuffie." He said. "You can't fall asleep under the table like that. You'll catch a cold."

"Yes mama Leon." Yuffie answered, yawning and crawling out from under the table. Even in her sleep she made fun of him.

Leon led her back to her bedroom and tucked her into bed. "Now go to sleep." He told her.

"Leon." Yuffie said, grabbing his hand. "You know... you would make a good parent. I kind of wish..." She trailed off, falling back to sleep.

Leon smiled down at her and pulled his hand gently from her grip. "Goodnight Yuffie." He said quietly, kissing her forehead. "You're a beautiful, brave woman you know."


	115. Dreaming of Ducks

"I had the strangest dream last night." Yuffie said, scratching her belly as she walked into the kitchen. Leon and the three tiny girls looked up from their breakfast of oatmeal. When Yuffie had shown them the tiny bowls she had made for them, the girls had laughed and teased her about how strange they looked, but they still used them. Yuffie didn't care as long as they were useful. And Yuna had properly thanked Yuffie for the gift, once Rikku was done laughing.

No one rose to her bait.

She slopped some oatmeal into a regular sized bowl and sat down at the table. "I was walking in a forest," she said, determined to tell them about her dream whether they wanted to hear it or not, "and instead of my feet I had duck feet, and when I tried to talk I quacked. What could it mean?"

"You've been spending too much time with Scrooge?" Yuna suggested.

"One day, you will be put under a spell by a wicked witch..." Rikku said, and went on to tell a fairy tale, with Yuffie as the princess.

Yuffie snorted. "You give just don't get symbolism, do you?"

"You want symbolism?" Rikku asked. "I'll give you symbolism. The duck's feet are for your situation; to show that you're treading water, in a metaphorical sense. When you try to communicate with the world around you, in the real world, you can't do it properly, so your voice comes out as a quack in your dream." She said, looking smug.

Yuffie blinked at her. "You're a quack." She said.

Rikku puffed her cheeks at Yuffie. "Well you're stupid!" She retorted.

Yuffie snorted. "Nice one. Pull out the old 'you're stupid' comeback."

"Paine!" Rikku whined. Yuna tried to comfort the other girl, but when Rikku went to Paine for protection all she got was a cold shoulder as Paine turned away and ignored her. Rikku slouched on the table, defeated by her friend's indifference.

Yuffie smiled. Maybe she didn't always get along with the trio, but at least with them around, she was never bored.

Leon who had been keeping out of the conversation until now, finally spoke up. "Did you know that a duck's quack doesn't echo?"


	116. Storm Brewing

There are no words to describe her feelings, as she waited for Sora to return, as she watched the horde gathering, and all they did was wait. Wait.

"Wait." Leon said.

"Just wait." Aerith told her.

"Godammit wait!" Cid yelled, as she fidgeted nervously.

"I am waiting!" Yuffie yelled back. "I'm waiting."

And the darkness grew. And finally, Sora arrived.


	117. Just Our Luck

She had never been so happy to fight. As she fought with Sora, all the tension and nervousness that had been growing in her belly was released, set upon the seemingly endless numbers of Heartless.

At first, it had seemed hopeless; there were thousands of Heartless. So many. So many.

But at some point during the battle she realized they were winning. They would win, and Hollow Bastion would survive to see another day.

After all, they were cockroaches.

The valley seemed so empty after the battle, after having been filled with so many Heartless. They never left behind bodies, they left nothing behind of themselves. Yuffie stood with the others, looking down at the battlefield and felt joy building up inside her, where once anxiety grew.

The others all looked sober, but she couldn't help herself; she let out a whoop of victory. "Yeah! We won!" She yelled. "Take that!"

Aerith smiled at her, but Leon and Cloud were frowning. "Something's wrong..." Leon said, staring down at Sora.

"Oh come on!" Yuffie protested. "Can't we just take one little moment to enjoy our victory?" She asked. "How come we never get to enjoy victory?"

Leon turned and gave her a small, dry smile. "That's just our luck I guess."


	118. Extortion

Leon stood in Yuffie's doorway, staring at her lying on her back on the floor. "Don't you think it's about time you made yourself a bed?" He asked.

Yuffie lifted her head to look at him. She grinned. "I kind of like the floor."

"Is that so?" Leon asked. "In that case, no more sneaking into my bed, if you like the floor so much." He started to walk away.

"No!" Yuffie yelled. "That's not what I meant! I take it back! Forget I ever said it!"

Leon peered back in to her room. "Forget it eh? I might need some compensation in exchange for... forgetting." He said deviously.

Yuffie stared at him. "Are you blackmailing me?" She asked, stupefied. Could this really be Leon, saying these words?

"Blackmail? _I _would never do such a thing." He said. Yuffie sighed. That's right; Leon was too noble. "I like to call it extortion."

Yuffie blinked at him for a second, and then lowered her eyes. "Fine. You can do what you want with my body..." She said, sighing prettily.

Leon stared at her for a moment, and then laughed. "I don't know what goes on in that mind of yours..." He said. "I was just thinking you could do all the chores around the house for the next month."

Yuffie grinned lopsidedly at him. "Of course. I was joking you know."

Leon raised his eyebrows at her. "Sure you were, pervert." He said, and walked away.

Yuffie fell back on her mat. Leon was right; she should make herself a bed soon. But if she had to do all the chores now, when would she ever find the time?


	119. Disappearing Act

After having finished cleaning the mountain of dishes that had piled up during the day (and the past three days), Yuffie rewarded herself with a cup of hot chocolate and a rest. She felt like she hadn't sat down in weeks, when really, it had just been days.

She sighed deeply. She hadn't seen Leon for days now, not since he had 'extorted' her into doing all his work on top of her own. Didn't he know she was a busy person already, without having to all his work too?

She made a face. No doubt the reason she hadn't seen him these past few days was because he knew exactly that, and he didn't want her to talk him out of the deal. Knowing his strong sense of duty, if he saw her fading away like this, under the stress of constant work and sleepless nights, he would call off the deal and start doing his work again.

If only she could find him.

She had tried staying up late at night waiting for him to come home, and waking up early to catch him before he left for the day, but somehow he always managed to avoid her. Even when she had snuck into his room to wait for him... Well, that night she had ended up falling asleep on his bed, but even so – there was a limit to how much he could avoid her!

She took a sip of her chocolate and grimaced as it burnt her tongue. Maybe he had gone off on a solitary journey – a man's journey or something of the sort. Roughing it in the wild for a couple of weeks, with only himself to rely on for food and shelter. Maybe it was something like that.

Maybe he was just avoiding her.

She blew on her hot chocolate and tried to cheer up. At least, with Leon gone, the three little devils weren't around so much anymore either.


	120. Leaving

"Aerith?"

Aerith looked up to find Yuffie standing above her and quickly wiped at her eyes. "Yuffie! What are you doing out so late?"

Yuffie frowned. "I could ask you the same thing. And in a place like this..." She waved her hand to encompass the area they were standing in; the ruins at the base of Maleficent's castle. It was Yuffie's secret place, where she would come when she didn't feel like seeing anyone. Apparently, she wasn't the only one who felt that way sometimes. "What's wrong?" She asked.

"Oh... nothing." Aerith answered and turned back to the view, smiling gently. Always smiling.

"Aerith." Yuffie said sternly. "Don't lie to me."

Aerith sighed. "Why should I be unhappy?" She asked. "Here we are, finally home, finally safe; why should I be sad?"

Yuffie sat next to Aerith, letting her legs swing over the edge of the crumbling balcony. "Why shouldn't you be? Isn't it only natural?" Yuffie responded. She couldn't bring herself to look at Aerith while she spoke the words though, so she stared off into the distance; at the town. "I mean, of course, we're happy now, but as humans, we feel so much more than just happiness. We'll worry, and we'll be angry, and we'll be sad. I just wish you would stop hiding everything and let me help at least." She said, and then blushed at the speech she had just made. "Or something."

Aerith leaned on Yuffie's shoulder. "You're right. We're better together."

Yuffie laughed nervously. She wasn't used to being so serious – ever. "Well then," she joked, "I feel like I've just confessed my love or something – should we elope?"

Aerith smiled, but didn't respond. After a moment she said, "I do worry. I think sometimes that he's going to leave me again. I feel like he's going far away from me, and I wonder; will he ever come back?"


	121. Come Back

That night Yuffie went into Leon's room and sat on his bed. This time, she would not fall asleep. This time, she would not miss him.

'I feel like he's going far away from me.'

He wouldn't leave right? He wouldn't just leave her? After everything they had been through together, he wouldn't just get sick of her and leave and never come back, right?

"Come back..."


	122. Never Give Up

'_Where are you?' _Yuffie wondered over her oatmeal in the morning. Leon's absence was really starting to worry her.

"Where is Leon?" Rikku demanded, flying into the kitchen in her underwear. A sleepy Yuna and Paine followed soon after, less energetic in the morning than their friend.

"I don't know." Yuffie answered sullenly. "Why should I know?"

"Because you know Leon best of all." Yuna said, filling her bowl with oatmeal.

"Yeah, as much as I hate to admit it, it's true." Rikku said.

"Well," Paine put in practically, "they have been living together for how long now? It's only natural you two."

Yuffie was quiet, because she didn't want to have to tell them they were wrong. It was true that she and Leon had been living together for years; she had spent most of her life with him, but that didn't mean she knew him best. She still had no idea how he felt, and she had no idea where he was.

"It's not fair." Rikku pouted. "Just because he's known her for longer, why should he like her better?"

Yuffie stood up. She wanted to yell at Rikku. 'Like me better?' She would say, laughing. 'What makes you think he even likes me? He ran away didn't he?'

But she didn't want to say it out loud. That would be like admitting defeat, and she wouldn't.


	123. Down With Love

She took to sleeping in his bed. She thought, maybe he would get angry with her for taking over his bed and he would come home and tell her off. She thought, this was as close as she could get to him now.

It smelled like him still. Three weeks he had been gone, but she could still smell him in the sheets. She buried her head under the blankets and tried to stay awake until he came home.

God, she felt pathetic. Staying up at night and waiting for him to come home; how pathetic was that? What was she supposed to be, a housewife with a cheating husband? A war bride?

She was just a girl, hopelessly in love.


	124. Lead And I Will Follow

_Why did she always dream of running? Surely she had better things to dream about._

_And yet here she was again, running after a figure in the distance. Lately, she could never tell who it was; she could never see their face. She couldn't even tell if it was a man or a woman._

_Maybe it meant that everyone was leaving her._

"Yuffie."

Yuffie shrugged off the hand that was shaking her shoulder.

"Yuffie wake up."

Yuffie's eyes flew open when she realized who it was calling her name.

"Leon!" She yelled and jumped on him before he had a chance to react. "Where the hell have you been? It's been a month you know?"

Leon smiled lopsidedly. "Yes, I do know." He answered. "I see the house hasn't fallen apart yet."

Yuffie glared at him. "Despite what you may think, I am capable of doing basic household chores." She said, and then punched his shoulder. "You jerk! Why did you just leave like that?"

Leon rubbed his shoulder where she had punched him. "I was... well, that's it. Come with me, and I'll show you."

Yuffie crossed her arms. "Yeah right. You think I'm just going to follow you after what you did? You're a total idiot."

Leon shrugged. "Maybe I am..." He said, and then grabbed Yuffie's hand. "Please. Just follow me."

Yuffie stared at him for a second. Didn't he have any idea how much she had worried while he was gone? Didn't he know how much she had missed him? How could he come back like this, smiling and laughing and still so beautiful? She wanted to punish him somehow for scaring her like he did, but then, how could she say no to him?

She sighed. "Fine. Fine. Let's go."


	125. Surprise!

She hadn't known what to expect. She had been a little excited, but when he started to lead her into the old ruined city she started to feel a little worried instead. What was it? Could it be another Heartless attack? Were they massing again?

They were reaching the edge of the city when he stopped her. She looked around and felt that somehow this place was familiar, but couldn't quite place it. Where were they?

"Close your eyes." Leon said.

Yuffie stared at him. "Why? So you can run away again?" She asked suspiciously. "I'll bet you just brought me out here to abandon me where I can't find my way back."

Leon sighed and looked hurt. "Do you really think so badly of me?" He asked. "I hadn't realized you hate me so much."

Yuffie almost laughed; he had no idea how wrong he was. She closed her eyes. "Whatever." She said. "If you do abandon me now, I_ will_ hunt you down."

"Understood." Leon said. He took her hand and started to lead her. She followed, silently wishing they had a long way to go. She liked the feel of his hand wrapped around hers. His hands were warm and dry, comfortable. She felt safe somehow, even though she couldn't see, just because he was holding her hand.

He let go all too soon, and told her to open her eyes. "We're here." He said. At first, when Yuffie opened her eyes she just saw Leon, grinning at her, and then she looked up.

She looked up and nearly fainted.

"This..." She couldn't find the right words to say. "How did you...?"

"Why do you think I was gone a whole month?" Leon asked. "I had no time for household chores with a project like this on my hands."

"You..." Yuffie took one step forward, another. "I can't believe this." She breathed, and looked up.

The pagoda. He had rebuilt the pagoda.


	126. Near Death Experience

He led her inside, and up the stairs to the top floor. Of course, the inside of the pagoda wasn't the same; there was no more furniture, no more paintings, no more plants and gardens. There was no way even Leon could have rebuilt that. But it was still her pagoda.

They stood on the top level and stared out at the ruined city, and the small core that was returning to life. It was early morning, and there were already some lights on.

"It's a great view from up here." Leon said. "I've started to feel jealous of you, getting to grow up in a building like this."

Yuffie shrugged. "I had to live with my annoying old man though." She said, still acting. "And besides, you never notice things when you're young." That was a lie. When she was little, she had come up here all the time to look down at the city and all the children playing together. She had always imagined herself down among them, playing games with the normal children.

Leon laughed. "Don't talk like an old woman already." He told her. "You're still young."

"So are you." Yuffie retorted. "So don't talk down to me."

"I would never." Leon answered seriously.

"Thank you." Yuffie said. "Thank you..." She felt like she was overflowing with thanks for him, and at the same time, she worried. Why did she always have to worry?

She knew exactly why. She had told Aerith, hadn't she?

"So..." She said. "Does this mean I can't live with you anymore?"

Leon stared at her for a moment. "That has nothing to do with this." He said. "I mean, I still want you to live with me." He stared out at the horizon, too embarrassed to meet her gaze. "Besides, it's a bit far don't you think? To have to come and go every day from here to the marketplace."

Yuffie was quiet. She wanted to hug Leon. She wanted to kiss him. She would say thank you again, but it just wasn't enough. It was never enough.

Leon turned to face her. "Yuffie," he said gently, "if you want to cry, go ahead."

"Why should I cry?" Yuffie asked. "I'm really happy; why would I even want to cry? I feel like laughing."

She laughed loudly then, as tears flowed out of her eyes. Listening to her, it was hard to tell if she was truly laughing or sobbing, but the only one listening anyway was Leon.

He put a hand on her shoulder, and she turned to him and buried her face in his shirt. "You're very brave." He told her.

"No I'm not!" She argued. "I'm scared all the time!" In between sobs she said, "I was so scared!"

Leon laughed. "The great ninja Yuffie scared? What interesting words... Perhaps I should go on another vacation..."

Yuffie stepped back to glare at Leon. "You even try it, and I will kill you!" She told him.

Leon just smiled.

"I'm serious!"

Leon held up his hands, admitting defeat. "Fine. I won't leave you alone again."

Yuffie nodded, and wiped her nose on her sleeve. "And if you tell anyone that I cried, I will kill you!"

Leon laughed. "Somehow, I feel like my life is always in danger, no matter what I do."

Yuffie smiled. "Well, I'll let you off for disappearing this time, since you did this for me." She pointed a finger at him. "But next time, tell me what you're planning and I'll help. What else is the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee for, if not this?"

Leon nodded. "Then let's go home." Yuffie said. "I'm sleepy."

Leon watched her running down the stairs. "But you know..." He said quietly. "I didn't really do this as part of the Restoration Committee."


	127. Misunderstanding

"Yuffie, can you go to the baker tomorrow morning?"

"Sorry Leon, but I think we're out of candles. I can pick some up tomorrow."

"Candles?" Leon paused to give Yuffie a quizzical look. "What about candles?"

"We're out." Yuffie replied.

"What has that got to do with bread?"

Yuffie stared at Leon for a moment before realizing she had misheard. "Bread? Baker... Oh, baker. Yeah sure, I can stop by tomorrow morning."


	128. Thick Skulled

"Oh, he did that did he?" Rinoa asked after Yuffie finished telling her about the pagoda, smiling strangely.

Yuffie tilted her head to the side as she watched Rinoa laughing. Zell sat beside Rinoa, smiling. The sickness had left him weak and very skinny looking and he still hadn't quite recovered and returned to his old self.

But they were alive. They were cockroaches.

Yuffie laughed suddenly. "And he told me I'm a cockroach!" She told them, snickering. "He meant it as a compliment! What a funny guy eh?"

Rinoa and Zell laughed. "Cockroach?"

"You're both pretty funny." Rinoa said.

"Both pretty thick." Zell muttered.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Yuffie asked. Rinoa just laughed and put her arm around Zell.

"So true." She agreed. "So true."


	129. Her Pagoda

Yuffie took to hiding from the three terrors in her pagoda. She would stand on the bottom floor and look up at all the levels, remembering running up and jumping down. Back then; this was her father's pagoda. It was his students' pagoda, and the instructors' pagoda; it was her pagoda.

She remembered it used to be full of noise. The students always seemed to be fighting over something, and whenever there was a fight, Yuffie always liked to get involved. Somehow, when the old man came around to break it up, it always ended up being her fault. She always argued that she hadn't started it, and he always answered that it didn't matter; she aggravated the situation. The daughter of the dojo's head shouldn't act like such a child.

Now, if she could go back, she would argue that she was a child. Back then, she wanted to think she was a grown up – she hated thinking of herself as a kid. But she was, and now that time was lost to her. She would never have a chance to argue with her dad again.

Because the pagoda no longer belonged to students or instructors, or Godo. Now, it was only hers.


	130. Mochi

A whisper in the dark.

"Hey Leon."

"What's wrong Yuffie? Couldn't sleep?"

"Do you remember a day when we were younger, in Traverse Town, when you taught me how to roll mochi?"

Leon sat up, his eyes slowly adjusting to the light and focussing on Yuffie. "Yeah." He said. "You were really bad at it."

"Well it was so damn sticky."

Leon smiled. "You said the same thing then. I remember; I was surprised at the foul language coming out of the mouth of an eight year old girl."

Yuffie laughed. "Growing up in a dojo will do that for you."

"What made you think of it?" Leon asked. "Are you having bad dreams again?"

Yuffie shifted nervously on her feet. "Ah, well... I remember now; my mom taught me how to shape mochi too, when I was little, but when you taught me I had forgotten, so it felt like the first time. It's just funny, don't you think?"

Leon was quiet for a moment. Yuffie was scared she was being depressing, talking about her dead mother. She wondered if he thought it was stupid of her, to wake him up in the middle of the night to tell him something so unimportant. But when she had thought of it, she had come to tell him without thinking, because she had always done so before. She didn't want that to change.

Finally he spoke. "What's really funny," he said, "is that you're still not any better at it."

Yuffie laughed and punched Leon's shoulder. He just smiled and moved over, holding back the blankets for her to get in. "The real reason you came here right?" He asked.

Yuffie grinned and flopped down on the bed next to him, laughing and nuzzling her face into the mattress to cover her embarrassment. If Leon knew the perverted thoughts she had when he did things like that, he would never let her in bed with him.

"You really should build yourself a bed frame." He muttered, but neither of them really wanted that.


	131. Another One

They were eating sea salt ice cream while walking home. Leon was walking on the ground like a normal person, and Yuffie was walking along eaves troughs beside him, happily licking away at her ice cream.

"This is so good!" She said for the umpteenth time since they had started eating.

"What's that?" Leon asked sarcastically. "It's good you say?"

"So good!" Yuffie repeated. She heard a buzzing noise and looked up to see the three little devils approaching. "Ugh. They're coming." She said.

"Who's that? Yuna and co.?" Leon asked, squinting. "I don't see anything."

"Right there!" Yuffie said, and pointed them out. She looked down to make sure Leon was looking in the right direction when the eaves trough below her feet suddenly disappeared. Or rather, it collapsed under her weight. She let out a small noise of surprise as she fell, but Leon was too busy squinting to notice.

She held out her hand to catch herself as she landed, and rolled to soften the fall. She had held out the wrong hand though, and she felt it sprain again in the same spot as before.

As she lay there, face down on the street she had a sudden premonition, a feeling that something big was coming once again. Sora would be back soon.

"Shit!" She yelled, rolling on to her back and holding her wrist. "Why me?"

Leon spun around and ran towards her. "Yuffie? What happened?"

"I fell again." She said sheepishly. "But don't tell the others when they get here."

"Is your wrist hurt? You didn't land on it again did you?" Leon asked, frowning. He grabbed her wrist and frowned even more deeply when she bit her lip in pain. "Why are you always doing such stupid things Yuffie?" He asked angrily. "How can you call yourself a ninja when you're this clumsy?"

Just then Yuna, Rikku and Paine arrived and crowded around Yuffie with Leon. Yuffie noticed Rikku leaning into Leon's shoulder as she feigned worry over Yuffie's injury. She noticed Yuna's real concern, and Paine's barely interested look – only even trying for Yuna's sake. And Leon was still yelling at her. Oh yes, she thought to herself, something big was coming.

She couldn't help it – she laughed.

Leon fell silent and stared at her for a minute before dropping her wrist. He stood up, and for whatever reason he seemed angry. "Excuse me for being genuinely concerned about your health." He said and turned away. "But you shouldn't take it so lightly."

He walked away, back towards the house, and Rikku flew after him, Yuna after her, and Paine after her, until Yuffie was left alone with her smarting wrist. "I just..." She started to explain belatedly. "I just had a funny thought, about ducks..."


	132. Sorry For Laughing

**I like the song. 'Sorry for laughing'**

* * *

Leon could hear Yuffie cursing in her room. It wasn't often that Yuffie was in a bad mood, but when she was, she swore like a sailor. He remembered what she had said about growing up in a dojo and smiled. He supposed then, that she swore like a ninja.

When he went to check what was up he found her sitting on her mat holding one end of a bandage in her mouth and trying awkwardly to wrap the other end around her wrist. When she noticed him standing at the door she glared up at him, her bared teeth still gripping the bandage.

"What are you doing to yourself now?" Leon asked, amused by her pitiful attempt at first aid.

Unable to answer due to the fabric in her mouth, Yuffie just glared at him for a moment more and then turned her back on him huffily to continue her efforts.

Leon shook his head and walked over to her, pulling the tissue out of her mouth and taking her wrist. "At this rate you'll just make it worse." He said practically. "Let me do it."

"Thanks." Yuffie mumbled.

Leon unwrapped what she had already done. Yuffie looked guiltily at her bared wrist. It was turning a lovely rainbow of colours, and it was swollen quite a bit beyond its normal size. Leon shook his head at her again. He really couldn't understand how anyone could be as clumsy as she was.

Yuffie watched him wrapping her wrist in silence. She thought of the last time he had done this for her. He was always looking out for her. Why did he always have to be so nice? She wasn't even good in return; she just caused trouble all the time.

"Sorry for laughing." She said quietly.

Leon leaned forward until he was uncomfortably close. If Yuffie leaned forward just a little bit, she could kiss him. "What was that? Did you just apologize?" He asked incredulously.

Yuffie blushed and shook her head furiously. "Of course not!" She replied. "Why should I apologize anyway?"

"No reason at all." Leon answered, smiling.


	133. A New Roost

"Maybe it's time we moved out." Yuna said one morning over oatmeal.

Rikku looked up from her own cereal, but didn't protest. She just looked mildly uncomfortable. For her part, Paine only managed to look mildly interested.

Silently Yuffie cheered. Finally, she would be rid of the three little devils! Her life could return to it's old relative peace! "Have you found a place?" She asked.

"Ok." Leon said at the same time.

Yuffie turned to look quizzically at Leon, but he wasn't paying attention to her.

"Merlin has invited us to live with him." Yuna said.

"He even built us a little house of our own!" Rikku put in. "On the roof of his house!"

"Cool." Yuffie said, imagining it in her head. Like a little doll house, or a roost for pigeons. Yeah, a roost for pigeons.


	134. Alone

"Ah... Alone at last." Yuffie said contentedly, waving goodbye to the three pixies.

"Hm." Leon agreed.

Yuffie turned to look at him, but when they made eye contact she had to look away. Alone; they were alone. How had she dealt with it before, she wondered. How was she supposed to act, all alone with Leon? The same as she always had, she supposed, but how was that again?

Leon walked back into the house and put a pot of water on to boil. Yuffie watched him go and started to feel unreasonably nervous. "I'm going out for a quick patrol before breakfast." She told Leon and ran out the door.

Maybe a run would help calm her nerves and clear her mind. She hoped.


	135. Mini Guardians

Somehow, she got back to normal. She went about her daily activities as usual, working on the reconstruction of Hollow Bastion during the day and her wood working until she fell asleep. Mostly, she kept herself too busy to worry about Leon.

She couldn't bring herself to get into bed with him anymore. Whenever she even thought about it – when she thought about how easily she had done it before – her fingers started to shake and she felt the urge to sneeze.

She shook her head at herself very often; she was weird.

And then, a week after the three pixies had left their home, the Heartless started to appear in greater numbers. They weren't the usual Heartless either, and at the meeting they had to discuss their appearance, Cid put forth the idea that they had somehow come out of the computer. Yuffie frowned. It was true that they did look futuristic, but how could something from inside a computer become tangible in the real world?

"I don't know." Cid answered grimly. "But it seems to be that way. We should contact Tron and see if he knows anything."

"I'll go." Leon volunteered.

Cid nodded and told Aerith to go with him. "Cloud and Yuffie, you two should be on patrol all the time. We can't let any Heartless get back into the city."

Cloud nodded and Yuffie saluted Cid. "Can do chief." She said.

"We'll go with you!" She heard small voices coming from above and sighed inwardly. Yuna appeared, followed by Rikku and Paine. "We may be small, but I'm sure we can be of help." She said, smiling at Yuffie.

"Well, I hear you did pretty well in the fight against the horde." Yuffie said.

"Leave it to us!" Rikku said, grinning and showing off her skinny arms. "We'll protect you Yuffie."


	136. No Help

"Hey Cloud?"

Cloud looked up through his bangs at Yuffie. There were always a couple of hours now when they were on patrol together, before one of them switched off, and Cloud usually avoided Yuffie, but she wanted to talk to him.

"What is it Yuffie?"

"Well, you love Aerith right?" Yuffie asked.

"So how did you tell her?"

Cloud looked away. Yuffie wondered if sometimes his silence wasn't a sign of embarrassment, rather than bad temper.

"I didn't really." He said.

"Then she confessed to you?" Yuffie asked. "What did she say?"

"She didn't say anything either." Cloud answered. "It just happened that way."

Yuffie frowned and sighed. "That's no help at all." She muttered. She would have pressed further, but a group of Heartless was approaching the town, and she had to get to work.


	137. Pahtay!

**Ohoho, underage drinking. :)**

* * *

It was Yuffie's idea to have a party, though everyone went along with it enthusiastically, even Cid. After so much trouble, having finally found their home and kept it safe, they all felt they deserved a little celebration.

They set up long tables around the marketplace courtyard, leaving the square open for dancing. The mood was lively, and everyone was in high spirits, and rightly so, as they gathered for dinner that night.

Yuffie stood at the table and clinked her fork against her glass, which was in fact made of tin and didn't have quite the same effect as a real glass would have, but it did the trick. Leon and Aerith, sitting on either side of her, clinked their forks against their glasses, and it passed around the table until she had everyone's attention.

Yuffie grinned at all the happy faces gathered at the tables. This was how it should be, she thought. It was so much better when everyone was smiling. "I don't really want to make a speech," she said, "just a toast, since we are celebrating right?" There were cheers and shouts of approval from the crowd. "To Radiant Garden!" She said, holding her cup up.

"To Radiant Garden!" Everyone shouted and held their glasses up with her. She laughed and drained her cup. She wished every day could be as happy as this one.

"You better watch how much you're drinking." Leon told her as she sat back down. She just laughed.

"Hey Leon, I've been meaning to ask – why did you come back? I figured you wouldn't leave Aerith alone."

Leon leaned forward to make sure that Aerith wasn't listening before he answered. "Aerith can be pretty scary when she wants to, you know." He said. "When she stares at you with that look on her face..."

Yuffie laughed. "I know! I know exactly the look! Just when you think she's innocent – she gets you!"

Leon nodded. Yuffie looked across the table at Sora, who was laughing and joking with the duck trio. She propped her elbows up on the table and stared at him. "You know..." She said idly. "It's kind of too bad Sora has Kairi. He grew up really nicely in a year."

Leon looked and Sora and then back her, grinning. "So that's your type? The young ones? I'll admit, I never figured you for a cradle robber."

Yuffie scrunched her nose up at Leon. "That's not it!" She protested. "I like older guys too. It's the heroic type I like, and of course, pretty boys."

Leon laughed. It seemed the atmosphere had loosened up even him. "How superficial, and how very you."

Yuffie snorted at him and poured herself another cup. While she was at it, she poured a cup for Leon too, and one for Aerith.

"Radiant Garden." She said, just because she liked the sound of it. Aerith turned and smiled at her.

The band started to play. As people finished eating they got up and went down into the square to dance. For the first song Yuffie sat in her seat and watched, happy just to see them twirling around and stamping their feet. By the time the second song started she couldn't hold back anymore – she had to jump in.

"Are you coming?" She asked Leon, really hoping he would. He smiled and shook his head. Yuffie shrugged, drained her cup and jumped down into the crowd. On the dance floor everyone was laughing and clapping and singing. Yuffie had never been in a crowd like this before, and she loved it. She joined right in, quickly getting the hang of it and dancing as if she had been dancing all her life.

She wished the music would never end.

The dance went on all night, and Yuffie kept dancing, even as the dance floor became less and less crowded as people went home to bed, or crept off together to be alone. She still felt so happy, like she was in a happy daze, and nothing would ruin it.

But she was starting to feel tired. In fact, she was feeling very sleepy, and she started to think she would like to just go home and fall asleep. She walked off the dance floor, surprised at how much cooler the air was off it and set off towards home. Leon was probably already asleep; she would have to be quiet so as not to wake him.

"Yuffie wait, I'll walk you home." Leon's voice said behind her. She turned and saw him walking towards her. She felt so much love for him at that moment, she was sure she would tell him about her feelings then, but when he got closer she started to feel dizzy, and her knees felt weak. 'Stupid love.' She thought, and reached out to grab hold of a railing that wasn't there.

Leon caught her before she fell and held her up. She felt pathetic leaning on him like that, but she was just so sleepy she couldn't help herself. "Thanks Leon." She said.

Leon shook his head at her. "I told you not to drink so much." He said.

"Oh? I'm not drunk." She told him. "I'm just very sleepy."

"Right." He said doubtfully and lifted her arm over his shoulder. "Never thought I'd have to drag you home like this."

Yuffie laughed. "Sorry I'm such a good for nothing." She said. "But tonight, I don't mind so much. I'm still too happy."

"Me too." Leon said, turning his head to smile at her. Yuffie felt very faint, being so close to him and having him smile at her like that. Or maybe that was exhaustion.

It seemed like they got home in a very short time. Yuffie hardly even remembered walking from the marketplace there, but she was just glad to have made it. She was so tired she could hardly keep her eyes open. So tired she just followed Leon into his room.

"Why don't you sleep on the bed tonight?" He suggested.

"Thanks." Yuffie said and collapsed on the bed. He tucked her under the covers and said goodnight, but she caught his hand. "Wait. Where are you going?" She asked.

"I'll go sleep on the couch, or on your bed." He said.

"No, in that case, I'll go." Yuffie said. She didn't think she really wanted to get out of bed, but she would do it for Leon, if he really didn't want to sleep with her. She could sleep anywhere in this condition.

"No, you stay in bed."

"You take the bed!"

"Yuffie!"

"Get in bed!" She yelled.

Leon sighed. "Why are you so difficult, even when you're drunk?" Yuffie grinned and pulled back the blankets for him to get in. "With you?" He asked.

"Sorry, but I don't feel like getting up, if that's ok."

Leon lay down beside her and got under the blankets. Yuffie smiled and settled deeper into the blankets.

"I thought you didn't want to sleep with me." Leon said quietly. "Since you haven't been in my room at all since Yuna and the others moved out."

"I just figured I shouldn't annoy you anymore." Yuffie answered. In her half-asleep, somewhat drunken daze, she spoke without thinking.

"It's not annoying." Leon answered.

Yuffie opened her eyes to look at him. He was facing her, but his eyes were closed. "...Are you a little drunk too maybe Leon?" She asked.

He opened one eye at her and smiled a little. "Maybe." He said.

Yuffie closed her eyes and laughed. "Even drunk, you're a true gentleman." She said. "I can't believe you waited for me and then carried me home. You're my hero." She sighed.

"You mean that?" He asked.

"Of course." Yuffie answered. "You're always looking after me... I'm just..."

"Just?" Leon repeated.

"Just..." Yuffie trailed off into sleep.


	138. The Hangover

"Oh..." Yuffie moaned. "I feel like I'm going to die."

Leon laughed, and the sound set her head to throbbing even more. "I told you to watch how much you drank." He said.

Yuffie tried to tell him not to be so smug with his 'I told you so', but she found she couldn't even make words anymore; she could only groan and lay her head on the table. She wondered if maybe she should just go back to sleep and wait for it to go away. She pushed herself off the table to get up and go to her room, but she felt too dizzy, and standing only made her head feel worse, and her stomach twist in very uncomfortable positions, so she sat back down.

"Here you go." Leon said, setting down a glass full of orange liquid in front of her. "A disgusting drink."

Yuffie took the glass and studied it for a second before drinking it. It looked just like orange juice to her, and when she gulped it down she found it was orange juice. She looked up at Leon, and he grinned at her.

"Sorry, but I don't know any miracle cures for hangovers." He said. "I never had that problem, so now you'll just have to deal with it."

Yuffie managed to stand up the second time she tried. "I'm going back to bed." She grumbled and left Leon in the kitchen, laughing at her still.


	139. Happiness

"How are you feeling now?" Leon asked. Yuffie cracked open an eyelid to peer at him and opened her mouth to let a little groan escape. Leon shook his head at her. He walked across the room to the window and opened the blinds. The sun shone in brightly – too brightly.

"You've slept the day away." Leon told her. "Everyone's already out and finished work by now."

Yuffie curled up into an even tighter ball under the covers. "I'll do it tomorrow." She mumbled.

Leon sighed. "That's not my point."

"Don't worry, I've learned my lesson." Yuffie said. "I will never drink like that again."

Leon looked down at her for a minute, then shook his head again and walked towards the door.

"I was really happy." Yuffie said, pulling the blankets away from her face. "Even though I want to die right now, I'm still really happy." She looked at Leon, who had turned back to face her and did her best to smile through the lingering headache.

Leon smiled back. "Me too." He said. "Now go back to sleep. I'll wake you up for supper."


	140. Gone

As Yuffie walked into Merlin's house Aerith was being led out by Leon. He had one arm around her shoulder and he was talking softly into her ear. She stepped back to watch them pass without thinking, and it never even occurred to her to talk to them; she just watched them go.

She turned back to Merlin and Cid once Leon and Aerith were gone and asked, "What happened?"

"Cloud is gone." Merlin told her.

"The dumbass." Cid muttered. He continued swearing softly as he turned back to his computer.

"He's... gone?" Yuffie repeated. "But why? Why would he leave, especially now? We just found out our name, and he... Why did he go?"

"He said he had to find himself." Merlin said. Behind him, Cid snorted and started on to a new round of curses. "He wants to understand the darkness in him."

"Why couldn't he do that here?" Yuffie asked. She felt lost for some reason. She felt abandoned, and if she felt this way, then how must Aerith be feeling? She stepped back against the door and held her head. What would Aerith do? Yuffie laughed. "What an idiot." She muttered, and turned to leave before she joined Cid in insulting Cloud.

She walked through the streets, paying attention only to her thoughts, not to where she was going. She thought maybe she was in shock, because it seemed unreal. Sure, Cloud was always a bit aloof, and a bit strange, but he had been genuinely happy when he was reunited with Aerith, and when they had discovered Radiant Garden's true name.

She thought of Aerith, sitting in a crumbling castle and saying, 'I feel like he's going far away from me,' and she wanted to scream. What an idiot! She looked up at the sky, and she could see the daylight moon, pale and far away. "You told me you were staying." She said. "I never thought you were a liar."


	141. Don't Lie

Yuffie came home late that night, but there was still a light in Leon's room. When she looked in on him he was just sitting on his bed, his gun blade in his lap, staring at the wall.

"Leon?" Yuffie asked, walking in. "Are you ok?"

Leon shook himself and focused on Yuffie. "Yeah. Well, I was just thinking about Aerith."

"Oh." Yuffie sat on the edge of the bed and asked, "How was she?"

Leon shrugged. "You know Aerith; she didn't exactly burst into tears or throw a fit."

Yuffie bit her nails nervously. She wished there was something she could do for Aerith, but what could she do? She was pretty useless in serious situations. Leon grabbed her hand out of her mouth and shook his head at her.

"Don't bite your nails."

Yuffie laughed. Leon frowned at her and she quieted down, remembering another time when he had gotten mad at her for laughing. "Sorry." She apologized. "But I was just thinking it's a stupid thing to care about now."

"Bad habits should never be encouraged."

Yuffie smiled at Leon. What would she do if he ever stopped taking care of her? What would she do if he stopped caring about all the stupid little things, bad habits and head colds. "Don't change." She told him. "Don't ever change."

Leon stared at her for a second before shaking his head. "You know Yuffie; we can't all be eternal children like you. I'm an old man by now, and I'm just going to keep getting older."

"You're not an old man." Yuffie protested.

Leon stared her down. "This is one point I'm not going to let you win."

Yuffie shrugged. "Fine, think what you want. But even when you grow up and become an old man, even if that changes, just... just don't leave."

Leon nodded.

"Promise me." Yuffie said.

"I promise. I'm staying." Leon answered solemnly.

Yuffie sighed. "That's what he said."


	142. Nothing

Yuffie was awake late into the night, staring at the back of Leon's head. She was willing him to stay in Radiant Garden, hoping that somehow her thoughts would drill themselves into his subconscious while he was sleeping. Maybe she was being selfish, but she just couldn't bear the thought of him leaving too.

He got up suddenly, and walked out of the room. Yuffie lay in the dark for a while, waiting for him to come back. She waited for what felt like forever, but he never came back.

"Leon?" She called, and when there was no answer she got out of bed to go looking for him. When she reached for the doorknob to get out though, she found it locked. She struggled to open it for a minute before giving up and kicking the door down.

The door opened onto darkness, and nothing.


	143. So Easy

"Yuffie, wake up! Yuffie!"

Yuffie woke up with her hand pressed against Leon's face and her knee in his stomach. She pulled back quickly and stared at him, relieved to see that he was still there. She couldn't remember what she had been dreaming, but she still felt sad, and terrified. It must have been bad.

"Sorry." She mumbled.

"The kicks and the punches I'm used to." Leon told her, rubbing his cheek. "But you haven't had a nightmare in a while."

Yuffie shrugged. She hadn't been so upset in a while.

"You can tell me." Leon said.

Yuffie laughed. "I know Leon." She said. "Usually, I can tell you, but not this time. Let's just go back to sleep. I'll try to stay on my side of the bed."

Leon flipped over and went back to sleep without saying any more. Yuffie stayed up later, wishing she could fall asleep so easily.


	144. Not So Easy

"Napping again?"

Rikku shushed Paine, as the three girls gathered around Leon, sleeping on the couch in Merlin's room.

"He must have had a rough night." Yuna said sympathetically, petting Leon's hair.

Paine snorted. "He seems to have a lot of rough nights, doesn't he?"

Rikku giggled.

"I don't think she meant it that way." Yuna said.

"Sure, I know that." Rikku answered, grinning at Yuna. "But come on, it's just the two of them now, in that big house together, and you know they sleep in that bed together. If you were in her position, wouldn't you want to have a few 'rough nights' yourself?"

Paine rolled her eyes. "He isn't man enough anyway." She said.

Yuna frowned at her friends. "Leon's just too much of a gentleman to try anything, no matter how much he loves her. Wouldn't you have a hard time sleeping with the girl you love sleeping beside you, unknowing?"

Rikku sighed. "I wish Leon loved me."

"Now that would be a rough night." Paine said, snickering.

"Hush you two – Leon's sleeping. We shouldn't wake him." Yuna shushed them.

"If you really didn't want to wake me, you might think about going elsewhere to talk about my love life." Leon said suddenly, causing the girls to jump up into the air in their surprise. He opened one eye to look at them. "I really am _trying_ to sleep here."

The trio flew away, leaving Leon to his nap.

"Do you think he was trying to sleep last night?" Paine asked, causing Rikku to break out into another fit of giggles.

"How do you twist everything that way?"Yuna asked.

Rikku grinned and shrugged. "It's a skill."


	145. Louder

"Maybe... I wasn't loud enough." Aerith said quietly.

"What do you mean?" Yuffie asked.

Aerith looked up, startled, as if she had forgotten Yuffie was working beside her, and had thought she was alone. "Nothing."

"That wasn't nothing Aerith." Yuffie said. She slid closer to the older woman. "Come on Aerith, I want to be able to help you. I can't do anything if you won't let me."

Aerith smiled. "I'm sorry Yuffie. It's just too sad." She turned back to her work and wouldn't say anymore. Yuffie sighed and went back to her own work.

"You have to be louder." Aerith said.


	146. Screaming

"I love you!" She screamed, standing on the top of her pagoda. "I love you! I love you! I love you!"

She yelled until she couldn't yell anymore, until it hurt to breathe. Can I be any louder? She wondered. How could she tell him?

"What can I do to make you love me?" She asked, but the wind wouldn't answer her. She climbed back down the pagoda.


	147. Risk

**I love Risk. Epic board games are the best.**

* * *

"All your bases are mine!" Yuffie declared victoriously. Leon sighed and shook his head. He looked out at what few men he had left under his command and plotted his strategy. It didn't look good. Yuffie's forces had beaten him across the board, and she was close to victory. But it was this that gave him a chance. She was overconfident, too sure of herself. Now was the moment to attack, and take her by surprise.

"Prepare yourself Yuffie." He told her, sending half his last forces out against her. "I will regain my honour."

Yuffie grinned condescendingly and rolled the dice. Leon watched as it fell to the table, rolled and spun for a second before falling on its side. A six. He had rolled a four. Yuffie laughed and threw her hand in the air.

"Your surprise attack plan has failed!" She told him.

Leon sighed and took his second last piece of the board. They had been playing board games since that morning, when they had woken up to a white world outside their windows. Radiant Garden was in the middle of a blizzard; there was nothing else to do but stay inside.

Leon hadn't won a single game since that morning. It wasn't that Yuffie was necessarily any better than him at board games; she was just so much luckier.

He looked up at her laughing face and shrugged. Well, he didn't mind losing all that much. And Yuffie was such a graceful winner.

"In your face!" She yelled, laughing and getting out of her chair to do a little dance. "The galaxy belongs to me! I am the conqueror!"


	148. Snowy Night

They went to bed with the wind still howling outside the windows. Yuffie sat up in bed for a long time, staring out at the wall of white outside. She was thinking about her father. She hadn't thought about him in a long time, it seemed like. For some time now he hadn't appeared in her dreams. It was always that strange person she could never quite make out.

"Where did you go?" She wondered out loud. And she could swear she heard a low whisper saying, 'You don't need me anymore.' She jumped out and stared around. "Old man?" She called, but there was no answer. She laughed quietly and shook her head at herself. She was going crazy now, was that it?

If it wasn't her father, then who was it in her dreams now? She thought of that solitary figure, always walking away. When she tried to imagine that back, that walk it seemed to her that it was someone familiar.

She got up out of bed and went into Leon's room. "Leon?" She called quietly. He probably wasn't awake anymore, but it was worth a try she figured.

She heard him moving in his bed. "Bad dreams again?" He asked.

Yuffie smiled and moved to the bed. "You know, I never used to believe you." She said. "I thought you were always so far away."

Leon said nothing, he just watched her. Yuffie sat on the end of the bed and crossed her legs. "But you've never been far away have you?" She asked.

Leon coughed. "I guess not..." He said. Yuffie thought she could hear some embarrassment in his voice.

She laughed. "Never mind me. I'm just in a strange mood." She said and got up.

"Yuffie, why don't you come sleep with me tonight?" Leon asked. "It's always warmer when you're here."

Yuffie hesitated and tried to make out Leon's expression, but it was too dark. "Ok." She answered and crawled up to get under the blanket with him.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Leon asked, but Yuffie shook her head.

"No, that's okay. You can just go to sleep." She said. Leon nodded and rolled over. Yuffie lay awake, straining her eyes to make out the shape of his back in the night.


	149. What Now?

**Quite probably, this is the end. Until KH3 anyway. :)**

* * *

"Leon? Are you asleep?" Yuffie asked.

"Yes." Leon answered.

Yuffie smiled at his back in the dark. "You're dreaming then are you?"

"Yes. I'm having a very nice dream where unicorns sing lullabies and I'm already asleep."

"I'm not offended, because I know you don't mean it." Yuffie answered.

She felt the bed shift as Leon turned over to look at her, as if he could really see her any better in this dark. "What is it Yuffie? You really do want to talk after all?"

Yuffie nodded and smiled. "I guess so. Sorry."

Leon shrugged. Yuffie knew, because the bed moved. "So what is it? Is it about your dreams?"

"Yeah." Yuffie was quiet a moment, thinking about what to say. Leon said nothing; he just waited for her to figure it out herself. "I don't dream about Godo anymore." She said. Leon nodded. "In my dreams now there is almost always a figure in the distance, walking away from me." She turned onto her back to look at the ceiling. She could feel Leon's moving on the bed, and it distracted her, but she kept talking. "At first, it was too foggy, and I couldn't see anything. I couldn't make out who it was. But recently, I've been able to see clearly."

Leon was quiet, waiting for her to go on, but she felt embarrassed now and she wasn't sure she should go on after all. "And? Who is it Yuffie?" He asked.

Yuffie turned back to Leon. He was close enough she could feel his breath on her lips. 'I love you.' She thought, and she knew she would tell him. "It's you Leon. It's always been you, in my dreams. You're always looking out for me; you're my guardian."

Leon turned away. "You dream about me that much?" He asked. Yuffie thought that maybe he was trying to joke, but this once, she wasn't in the mood.

"You really are always looking out for me, aren't you?" She asked. "Not just in my dreams, not just when I ask you to, or when I'm in trouble. You've looked after me since Traverse Town."

"Yuffie..."

"I love you Leon." She blurted out. That was it. She wasn't even sure it was the right thing to say, the right thing to do, but Aerith had told her to be louder. She wasn't going to be silent anymore.

"I love you too Yuffie." Leon answered.

"No. I'm serious. I really love you. As in _love you_ love you." She argued. She wanted him to understand exactly what she meant.

Leon laughed and her heart skipped a beat. Then he said, "I'm serious too."

"Oh." Yuffie said. She hadn't expected that. She hadn't known what to expect; just anything but that. "Oh." She said again.

"Yeah."

She stared into the darkness, and she thought that maybe, just a little, she could see their breath mingling together in the cold night air. "Well... what now?" She asked.


End file.
